Rodwell open to centre-back switch

Sunderland midfielder Jack Rodwell says he is happy to fill in at centre-back should manager Sam Allardyce need him to following their 6-2 drubbing by Everton.

Rodwell was moved into central defence, his boyhood position, for a large chunk of the clash against his former club at Goodison Park as Wes Brown and Sebastien Coates suffered a torrid time against the Toffees attack.

And with the first choice centre-back pairing of Younes Kaboul and John O'Shea out injured, Allardyce could well call on the former Manchester City man to assist shoring up the ailing Black Cats defence, a role Rodwell is willing to embrace.

"I think the manager felt like he had to change something yesterday, but the game was long gone already," he is quoted as saying by theShields Gazette.

"It’s a comfortable position for me. It’s where I played as a youth team player, all the way up to England Under-21s really. It’s when I started playing in the first team at Everton, that I got moved into midfield.

"But it’s a position I feel comfortable in and if the manager wants me to play there, then I’m happy to do it."