Sunderland injury news: The one player who could return for play-off push - and those who won't

If Sunderland manage to do it, they will have done it the hard way. Tony Mowbray was without eight senior players at The Hawthorns due to injury, and it's a situation that is unlikely to change significantly either in the fortnight ahead or in the play-offs - if the Black Cats get there. With West Brom playing their game-in-hand tonight against Sheffield United and Sunderland almost certainly needing to win their last two games regardless, the odds are probably still just about against them.

Mowbray has already confirmed that Ross Stewart would be unable to play any part in a potential play-off campaign, with the striker targeting a return to match action in the middle to latter stages of pre-season. Club captain Corry Evans is likely to be out for a little beyond that with his ACL injury.

There is hope that Aji Alese, Elliot Embleton, Jewison Bennette and Danny Batth will all be able to hit the ground running at the start of pre-season, but none are expected to be available either this month or anytime next and so are ruled out of any potential play-off campaign.

And while Niall Huggins is back training, Sunderland are determined not to push him and risk another setback and so as it stands he is splitting his training time between the senior and youth groups depending on which sessions are best suited to his ongoing recovery. As such, the prospect of him playing in a high-pressure, high-tempo competitive fixture this season is remote and the pre-season campaign is seen as an important part of his comeback.

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The one player who could return to bolster Mowbray's ranks in Dan Ballard, and that could leave the head coach with a decision to make in the weeks ahead.

It was initially feared that Ballard's hamstring injury would make him another player unable to feature again this season, but he has made solid progress and is relatively close to a return.

He is yet to resume training, but his head coach confirmed last Friday that could happen this week: "I've spoken to him today and that's not going to happen for this weekend, he might possibly have a few days of training before the next game but it's a daily assessment, so we'll have to see on that one."

Ballard has an outstanding debut campaign on Wearside, and Mowbray would relish the opportunity to have him back in his defence. The 23-year-old would add a physicality that the Black Cats are sorely missing in Batth's absence, particularly when it comes to set pieces. However, the head coach will also be eager not to push Ballard too quickly and risk losing him for a longer period. His reshuffled back three also performed admirably at the Hawthorns, and so it may well be that he is not risked this weekend.

His return at some stage would be a major boost but broadly speaking, Mowbray and his side are going to have to do this with a threadbare squad.