RLB ON AFCON LADS

Regis Le Bris has explained why Noah Sadiki was put straight back into the Sunderland side at Everton and was able to play the full 120 minutes, whilst Reinildo and Bertrand Traore weren't in the FA Cup squad.

SADIKI WASN'T FATIGUED

"Straight after the elimination from AFCON, Noah told us that he wanted to train immediately, as quickly as he could. He wanted to make sure he could be back connected with the squad as quickly as possible, and that is a good sign. We spoke [on Friday] about his fatigue, but he said he was ready and the way he played [at Everton] proved that. Maybe one day it will happen that he gets some fatigue, but I don't know when! He played a very good game once again and is a really important player in our squad. With Granit, Noah and Enzo, I think we had a really strong midfield."

RESPECT THE CUP

"We were ready to fight. We want to be strong every day. We didn't want to take unnecessary risks with three, four, five players it was obvious, but the depth of the squad is good. We played this game at 100% intensity. I think for the next round it will be the same. At least respect the game and try your best."

BROBBEY/REINILDO/TRAORE FITNESS

“We are not too worried about Brian because it was tightness in his hamstrings. We have had this previously with him, so we didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks. With Reinildo and Bertrand, we will see. Rei might be available next week, but Bertrand has come back with an injury that we will have to assess. It is an injury issue he has come back with, but we don’t really know any more than that yet.”