Sunderland are hopeful defender Omar Alderete will be fit to face Wolves on Saturday afternoon, but manager Regis Le Bris could not guarantee his availability.
The summer signing from Getafe has slotted into the Black Cats team impressively, playing all seven Premier League games in their good start to the campaign.
The Paraguayan scored the only goal of the game in a win at Nottingham Forest last month and has helped his side concede just six goals in the first seven matches on their return to the top flight.
However, there is concern over his fitness as he played for Paraguay over the international break and was substituted late on in their 2-0 defeat to South Korea in Seoul.
Reports from Paraguayan media stated Alderete was suffering from ‘posterior muscle overload in his thigh,’ but how serious that issue is was not clear.
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Speaking at a press conference ahead of the weekend’s action, Le Bris said the defender is speaking positively about his fitness, but training on Thursday afternoon will be key to prove that he can play.
‘Omar, after 20 hours flight, we’ll see!’ Le Bris said. ‘We’ll check him this afternoon. We had a quick chat with him and he’s positive.’
He added on Noah Sadiki, who has an ankle issue: ‘For Noah, we checked him yesterday and he seems OK. We’ll see after the training session today and tomorrow but we are positive.
‘At the minute, he seems OK. He had this injury before so he knows how it can evolve and how serious it can be. At the moment he’s positive.
‘We’re hopeful that both Omar and Noah can start, it’s possible.’
Who else is out for Sunderland?
Le Bris remains without longer term injury absentees Habib Diarra, Leo Fuhr Hjelde and Aji Alese, while Reinildo Mandava is still serving a suspension.
Are Wolves improving?
On the challenge of Wolves this weekend, who have just two points from seven matches, the Black Cats boss said: ‘They struggled at the beginning of the league but the last two games showed that they are really competitive.
‘They deserved to win their last two games. Good players, good energy, well coached.
‘This is the league, you can struggle even if you are strong. If you are not clinical you can be punished. They had many chances to score a second goal. That is the Premier League.
‘I hope that we will able to score twice and win.’