RLB ON TRAORE

Regis Le Bris has confirmed that Bertrand Traore is now available for selection after recovering from his knee injury. The winger is out of contract in the summer and it is unclear whether the one-year extension will be triggered at this point, but Le Bris insists that the 30-year-old's contract situation will play no part in his selection decisions in these next two games.

KEPT OUT V MAN U

“At the minute, we have a full group, so I had to make a decision last week. His trajectory was probably a bit different if you compare with Jocelin and Nilson, who were back as well. It was a re-injury for Bertrand, so probably I needed more time to be comfortable with his selection."

DIDN'T RUSH HIM BACK

"I had this conversation with him yesterday, and I was clear and honest. This week, it was more consistent, I think. It's not easy to manage a re-injury and it was a new injury for him as well. In a career, sometimes you have an ankle injury and then a re-injury, so you know exactly what is the timeline and so on. For him, with his knee, it was totally new. Because it was a re-injury, I think it was important to be a bit more cautious and this week was much, much better.”

CONTRACT

“I told him, and it's clear with you as well: Bertrand, when he's available for selection, is playing for Sunderland. Until the last game, last day, he's 100% aligned with the others.”