Aiden O’Brien set to miss out for Sunderland against Sheffield Wednesday

Posted Wednesday, December 29, 2021 by PA

Sunderland are again likely to be without Aiden O’Brien as they host Sheffield Wednesday in Sky Bet League One.

The Irishman tested positive for coronavirus prior to Monday’s win over Doncaster and has been isolating.

Two other squad members in Jordan Wills and Ellis Taylor also tested positive but neither were likely to feature anyway, with the former out injured and the latter a youngster on the fringes of the side.

Midfielder Carl Winchester will hope to overcome the training knock that kept him out on Monday but the Black Cats now know Nathan Broadhead’s hamstring injury could sideline him for at least three months.

The match will be Wednesday’s first outing since December 11 after the postponement of games against Accrington and Burton following a Covid-19 outbreak within their squad.

The Owls now appear to be over the worst but it was unclear how many players were affected and who will be available for the trip to the north east.

One player who will not be involved is midfielder Massimo Luongo, who is still suspended following his red card at Portsmouth earlier this month.

Sam Hutchinson, Dennis Adeniran and Chey Dunkley had all been close to returning to action from injuries prior to the postponements.