Nathan Broadhead, Luke O'Nien, and Aiden McGeady are making good progress as they recover from long-term injuries - but are 'weeks away rather than days' from returning, according to new Sunderland boss Alex Neil.
Winger McGeady and midfielder O'Nien have not played since Sunderland's game at Shrewsbury Town on November 23, with the former suffering a medial ligament injury while the latter underwent surgery to fix a recurring dislocated shoulder.
On-loan Everton striker Broadhead's last outing was the Carabao Cup quarter-final at Arsenal the week before Christmas when he suffered a torn hamstring.