Sunderland fear Wes Brown's season is over.

The Daily Star says the 36-year-old former England and Manchester United centre half is out of Sunday's Tyne-Wear derby against Newcastle with a knee injury.

And there are fears that Brown could be sidelined for the rest of the season after limping out of the 1-0 defeat at West Ham a fortnight ago after just 12 minutes.

Brown's contract expires in June and although there have been preliminary talks about a new deal, he's yet to put pen to paper.