Johnson gets injury boost as McLaughlin nears return
Conor McLaughlin is expected to step up his recovery next week by playing for Sunderland's Under-23s on Monday afternoon.
McLaughlin was a regular in the early weeks of Lee Johnson's tenure but an ongoing hernia problem required surgery and he has not played sincethe1-1drawwithHullCity on January 9.
Max Power has recently stepped in at right-back and McLaughlin's return will strengthen Johnson's options.
McLaughlin is expected to play some part when the U23s play Newcastle United at the Academy of Light.
Johnson is expected to be without Callum McFadzean when Sunderland return to MKDonsthisafternoon,which couldseeSouthamptonloanee Jake Vokins make his debut.
"We've allowed Callum to rest," Johnson said.
"I think more than likely he'll be unfit for the game.
"We were contemplating on him travelling just to give him that extra day but to be fair, we've got at least three players who can play in that position.
"Tom Flanagan can play there if we want that bit of extra height, we've got Jake Vokins who we've brought in and then we've got Dion Sanderson, who did extremely well when he played that role against Northampton.
"I think the squad is in a decent place in terms of numbers, and that leaves me with some sometimes difficult decisions, but to be honest it doesn't feel that difficult with so many games, because I think every player has something to look forward to at the moment."
Bailey Wright is expected to return for Sunderland after coming through his concussion protocols.