Tony Mowbray handed January signing Pierre Ekwah his first senior start as one of three changes at Burnley to the Sunderland side that started the draw against Luton Town at the Stadium of Light going into the international break. Former West Ham midfielder Ekwah came into the side in place of Edouard Michut, who had to settle for a place on the bench having only returned from international duty with France U19s on Thursday.
Abdoullah Ba was also part of the France U19 squad and he was also dropped to the Sunderland bench at Turf Moor, with Alex Pritchard taking his place. The third change was forced upon Mowbray after Dan Ballard picked up a hamstring injury while away with Northern Ireland.
Lynden Gooch came into the side to play at full-back, which allowed Luke O'Nien to move to fill the gap left by Ballard in central defence. It was Gooch's first start since suffering a hip flexor injury in mid-January, although he had been involved from the bench in each of the last three games.
