Tony Mowbray is reluctant to rush Ross Stewart back from his injury rehab. Plus, he firmly believes that Stewart's long-term future lies on Wearside.
DON'T RUSH IT
"I think he'll be on the grass before then [World Cup break] but it's just about how quickly he gets up to speed and how he feels in himself. What we wouldn't do is rush him back, thinking 'oh we need him for this game' and it's one game before that international break, for example."
EXTRA RECOVERY
"In that scenario you might as well give him the extra three weeks to be on the training pitch and to get fully up to speed, then you can unleash him against Millwall. I don't know for sure at the moment, we'll have to wait and see."
BALLARD UPDATE
"I would hope that Dan Ballard will be available straight after that World Cup break, so there's positive stuff building for us. We just have to win some football matches between now and then."
CONVERSATIONS
"I've had a couple of long chats with Ross now, he's a lovely boy. He's a professional, articulate, bright and clever. We're looking forward to getting him back."
CONTRACT TALKS
"Speaking to Ross, I think he believes in the right place for him and for his career. I've talked to him about the vehicle, if he keeps scoring goals at the volume and ratio he has, is this the right vehicle for him to showcase [how good he is]. I think we both believe it is, there aren't many stadiums in this league where you can get 40,000 fans giving you that hero worship when you work as hard as he does and bangs in goals like he does."
PREMIER LEAGUE QUALITY STRIKER
"It's a fantastic place for him to be, and hopefully he can help this club progress to the Premier League over the coming years. If not, the phone will ring from the Premier League if he keeps scoring goals as he does. We'll see how it moves forward, but as a lad I really like him, he's a good kid and he's very much on board with this club."
