Bailey is not quite Wright to start in first warm-up fixture
MEETING WITH RANGERS
BAILEY Wright is the only likely absentee when Sunderland take on Rangers in the first friendly of their Portugal trip.
The Black Cats are on the Algarve for a week-long training camp and face the Scottish Europa League finalists at the Estadio Municipal de Albufeira tonight before taking on Jose Mourinho’s Europa Conference League winners Roma on Wednesday.
Alex Neil’s side trained in the morning and evening on Thursday and were back for a single morning session yesterday.
However, while the bulk of the squad trained together, Wright was training on his own overseen by physical performance
coach Scott Ainsley. Sunderland secured promotion to the Championship via the play-offs at Wembley in late May, meaning the players had just four and a half weeks off over the summer.
However, Wright had an even shorter break.
He was away on international duty with Australia, helping the Socceroos qualify for this winter’s World Cup in Qatar on June 13, and while he was given a few extra days to recover he still had only a fortnight off before returning to sign a new two-year contract with the club.
That has meant he is two days behind the remainder of the squad in terms of his pre-season preparation and, with that in mind, Neil may decide not to involve the 29-year-old in the Rangers game.
He may wait until Wright is back training with the rest of the squad next week before possibly using him against Roma in the final game before Sunderland head back to England.
Of his shortened summer, Wright said: “Football-wise it has been a great summer – things have gone really well, being promoted with Sunderland and then qualifying for the World Cup with Australia.
“I could not have wished it to go any better.
“I guess I had a little bit less time off than some of the other lads but I would not have had it any other way. It is good to be back at it after what has been a memorable summer and I am ready to do it all over again.”
Looking ahead to the friendlies out in Portugal, Wright added: “With the size of the club and where we are now, we can have good and competitive preseason fixtures against teams like Rangers and Roma – two really, really, good sides who had good seasons in Europe last year.
“It is going to be a good test for us, a good test of our fitness levels and of our football.
“It is a great set-up here and there is a great pitch so these are games to look forward to.
“I know it is pre-season but you go out with the bit between your teeth and you want to win the games and test yourself against quality players.”