Tony Mowbray drops a Sunderland injury hint ahead of Coventry City clash

The trip to Coventry will be Sunderland's seventh game of a demanding February, and the impact on Mowbray's squad has been obvious.

The Sunderland head coach remained tightlipped on the identity of those struggling ahead of the latest away game, though he remains confident that he'll be able to name a strong side.

"Yes, but not that I'm going to tell you about," Mowbray said when asked for any injury updates at his pre-match press conference.

"There's nothing new in terms of players coming back - we've just got a few that are carrying some knocks and niggles.

"That seems to be the case most weeks, and what do I know is that we'll put what is hopefully a competitive team out at the weekend at Coventry to try and get three points."

Mowbray had hinted this week that he will make a number of changes for the game, having made three for the clash with Rotherham United.

Sunderland are likely to revert to their more familiar shape and style after switching things up to play against Rotherham's direct, high-intensity style.

"We’re trying to get the balance right,” Mowbray said on Monday.

"We’ve made three changes in the last couple of games, and there’ll probably be another three changes for Rotherham.

“There might be for the weekend again, but then after that, we’ve got a week of going Saturday to Saturday where hopefully we can recover a bit."