Black Cats player tests positive

ONE Sunderland player has tested positive for Covid and will miss out on tonight’s Carabao Cup quarter-final at Arsenal, but the Black Cats’ vaccination rate means the impact on the squad has been limited.

Sunderland boss Lee Johnson has confirmed that one unnamed player has been ruled out of tomorrow’s trip to the Emirates Stadium, but says there are no close contact issues.

Sunderland have a 97 per cent vaccination rate within their squad – only one player is understood not to be fullyvaccinated – and that means they are better placed than many clubs to cope with a positive test.

Previously, close contacts of a person who had tested positive needed to isolate, but close contacts who have received two doses of vaccine now need only take daily lateral flow tests for seven days to confirm they have not caught the virus.

Another round of testing is scheduled tomorrow morning before the squad heads to London, but as things stand Johnson believes only the one affected player will be absent.

“We have one Covid case,” said Johnson. “And there are no close contact issues. So all that is involved is [close contacts] taking a lateral flow test for 7-10 days.

“That’s where the rules are different now.

“We have to be careful about knocking people out through Covid, but not as careful about knocking them out as close contacts because of our vaccination rate.

“Somebody who we were planning to have in the squad, now can’t be in the squad.

“But we will have another round of testing tomorrow.

“All our players will be setting their alarms for 7.30am for a lateral flow test before we travel down by train.”

Sunderland could also be without on-loan Union Berlin forward Leon Dajaku after he came off with a knock in the first half of the draw at Ipswich Town.

However Johnson has not yet ruled Dajaku out of the tie, saying: “We’ll give him every chance. We’ll probably have him X-rayed because it is still a bit sore, but it’s a contact injury so we will give him every chance to be available.”

One player who will be in the squad is midfielder Corry Evans, who returns after almost a month on the sidelines with a thigh injury.