Luke O’Nien and Jermain Defoe could be involved when Sunderland AFC face Fleetwood Town at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday evening (KO 7.45pm).
O’Nien underwent shoulder surgery earlier in the campaign and hasn’t featured since November, whilst Defoe missed the trip to Charlton Athletic.
Alex Neil is also quietly optimistic that Alex Pritchard’s injury isn’t as serious as initially feared, but the full extent will be determined by a scan and the midfielder will not feature against the Cod Army.
The Head Coach also provided an update on Danny Batth’s recovery, revealing the defender is closing in on a return to action.
“It has been a slow burner [with Danny Batth],” said Neil.
“He’s tried to come back on two separate occasions and on both we have probably made the situation a little bit worse – hence the reason why he’s been out for this length of time – but it’s not anything severe and hopefully over the next week it should start to clear up and we can hopefully get him going.”
He continued: “Immediately, Alex will not be available for the short term.
“We will get more news on the scan this evening and I don’t think it’s as bad as first feared because the swelling isn’t as bad as we expected, so hopefully that’s a good sign.
“Luke was in the [travelling] squad for the last game, but he hadn’t done much so naturally he is one step closer, and JD, who obviously missed out [on Saturday] with a niggle, has the potential to be involved.”