Sunderland pair fit to face Hull City as the Black Cats receive injury boost

Sunderland pair Alex Pritchard and Dennis Cirkin will be fit for their clash against Hull City at the Stadium of Light on Friday evening. The Tigers head to the North East as they look to end the season on a high under Liam Rosenior.

The Black Cats, on the other hand, are still in with an outside shot of making the play-offs so will be keen to pick up all three points. They are winless in their last three league outings.

Attacking midfielder Pritchard has struggled with a muscle problem this week but is now back in training with his teammates. Mowbray has said: “He trained today and did a full session but he didn’t train the other day because he was feeling a bit tight.

“There was no real risk to take, we have two big games coming up so we’ll manage that situation and he’s going to be available.”

Left-back Cirkin, who has previously been on the books at Tottenham Hotspur, came off the bench last weekend in the 0-0 draw at Burnley following his spell on the sidelines and is now fit again which is a big boost. His manager has said: “He’ll have to wait for his opportunity and that might come in the next few games, because the games come so thick and fast.

“Lynden Gooch is not long back from an injury and he came in [at left-back] and did very well for us. We have to be mindful of players who have been out with injuries and there will be opportunities for us to rotate in the coming games.”

Hull are currently 17th in the table and are not quite safe from the drop just yet, especially with teams below them such as Huddersfield Town in strong form. The Tigers don’t have a fit senior striker either with Oscar Estupinan joining Benjamin Tetteh and Aaron Connolly in the treatment room.