Sunderland boss Steve Bruce is confident his squad is too good to be sucked into a relegation battle.

Bruce is confident that Sunderland have far too much in their armoury to slip into relegation trouble.

He said: "I mustn't forget that the club has struggled against relegation for the last two years.

"We have done a lot to try and turn that around. But we must remain positive. When we get the players back I am still convinced we can have a decent end to the season.

"But there's no fear yet. I still believe that, when we've got everybody fit again, we can compete and finish in the top half of the table."