Wes Brown is hoping to return from long-term injury by starting Sunderland's Capital One Cup clash with Southampton on Wednesday. The experienced defender made his first competitive appearance in nearly two years on Saturday as he entered a 1-0 defeat to Hull City as a half-time substitute.
He told the Sunderland Echo: "It was only 45 minutes, so for myself that was fine. It was good. It was just good to be back in the swing of things.
"Hopefully I can get a chance against Southampton. That's what I've been working for, that's why I've been working hard in training. We'll see what happens but, touch wood, I can play a part.
"I've had a few reserve games so I was always looking to come back into the Hull game and be in the squad. But it was disappointing with the way I came back after getting two men sent off in the first half. It was always going to be a battle from then on.
"It's good to be back. To be fair, I've been training for three or four weeks now. I had a few reserve games, just to get me back into it. But obviously playing first team football is a lot different."
For breaking stories and all the great banter like us on Facebook: facebook.com/tribalfootball