Sunderland welcome Cardiff City to the Stadium of Light in a crucial Championship clash on Saturday

Leicester City loanee Will Alves is set to return to the Cardiff City squad when they face Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Saturday afternoon.

Winger Alves joined the club in January and made a positive impression in his early appearances, but has been absent for the last couple of weeks with injury. Boss Omer Riza confirmed that the 19-year-old was now available, though Andy Rinomhota has emerged as a major doubt after picking up a knock in the 2-1 defeat to Burnley in midweek. The Bluebirds' manager confirmed that the game on Saturday will also come too soon for his longer-term absentees, including experienced midfield pair David Turnbull and Joe Ralls.

"Andy came off with a tight hamstring so he probably won't be involved," Riza said.

"Ash's [Cian Ashford] back was tight at half time, then we managed to get him through another 15 minutes. Then we decided to be cautious with it and he came off.

"Dave Turnbull is training, he trained today, did really well. Jesper Daland was on the grass, running, done some technical stuff with us in the morning. Yak [Yakou Meite] and Rallsy [Joe Ralls] did some training individually with the S&C (strength and conditioning) coaches, they are on their way back.

"Ollie [Tanner] has been doing some AlterG running (anti-gravity machines), so not his full body weight yet. Hopefully he will be back for Blackburn, the game after, potentially.

"Jesper and Turnbull need more training, Jesper missed five or six weeks of training, so he needs to be conditioned again. They are in on their days off. Dave Turnbull has had his injury and is finding his way back, he looked good today, we will get him involved when we can.

"Will Alves has trained the last couple of days, he will train tomorrow and he will travel."

Rinomhota has been a regular since Riza took over from Erol Bulut earlier this season, often playing successfully out of position at right back and so his absence would be a big setback for the Bluebirds. Riza's side currently sit one place but five points ahead of the Championship relegation zone.

Régis Le Bris's Sunderland injury update ahead of Cardiff City clash

Régis Le Bris issued a Sunderland injury update ahead of the game, confirming that Ian Poveda is facing another spell on the sidelines. Tommy Watson will return to the squad.

"We will have to wait for Ian," Le Bris said.

"I don't know exactly what the timeframe will be for his return to play but it might be three to four weeks. It's frustrating because we know he is talented as a winger, he has the ability to dribble and create something from nothing in short spaces. So far he wasn't available for many reasons. Tommy should be with us this weekend, yeah.

"So far, Enzo and Dan are on track in their recovery, Enzo should probably be available after the international break more or less, with Dan it will be a little bit longer."

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