Last Updated: Tue, 21 Feb 2012 11:56
Titus Bramble has received a further setback in his road to recovery and is now expected to be out of action for another month.
The Black Cats defender picked up an Achilles problem in Sunderland's 1-1 draw against Everton on Boxing Day. Although the former England under-21 was back in training, a relapse occurred which has pushed back his return date to the back end of March.
Sunderland have seen a turn around in their fortunes since manager Martin O'Neill picked up the reigns from Steve Bruce last year. They are now up to ninth in the Premier League table after floating around the relegation zone in the early stages of the season.
O'Neill has admitted that the latest news on Bramble is a setback to his squad. "Titus has got a boot on and he's going to be immobile now for a few weeks." He told http://www.shieldsgazette.com/sport/football/sunderland-afc/sunderland_defender_titus_bramble_suffers_new_blow_1_4268281.
The former Aston Villa boss is also without the services of Wes Brown at the moment, who is also on the injury list.
They did though, manage to keep a clean-sheet in their 2-0 victory over Arsenal on Saturday in the FA Cup at the Stadium of Light. They will now face Everton in the quarter-final for a place in the last four of the competition.
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