Sunderland's Connor Wickham will be back sooner than expected
Sunderland manager Steve Bruce says injured striker Connor Wickham will be back in action sooner than expected.
The Black Cats initially suspected Wickham had ruptured his cruciate knee ligament when he was stretchered off in the opening minutes of their 1-0 defeat at Manchester United.
Bruce feared he could miss the rest of the campaign but scans have showed the £8m striker has only suffered damage to the ligament at the back of his knee and likely to be missing for only four to six weeks.
"Thankfully, it won't rule him out for the season which was our initial fear and that is a big relief," Bruce told the club's official website.
"If you tear your cruciate or medial ligament, you are generally out for at least six months.
"We believe there is damage to a ligament at the back of the knee and we hope that it will repair within four to six weeks."
