ENGLAND striker Kevin Phillips is fighting on two injury fronts to play in this afternoon's crucial relegation battle against Leicester City - labelled a "must-win" game by Sunderland manager Peter Reid.

Reid made no bones about the importance of the match against a bottom-of-the-table side buoyed by a 2-1 win over fellow strugglers Blackburn Rovers following the Wearsiders' 3-0 defeat at Arsenal.

He is confident that 11-goal Phillips will be sufficiently recovered from ankle and stomach injuries in time to try to put an end to a dismal six-match run without a goal.

Reid said: "The game against Leicester is massive and it is imperative that we win.

"We are down there in a dog-fight and it is no use hiding from the fact.

"We are in this situation because we haven't played well this season and we have got to get ourselves out of it."

He added: "We owe it to our supporters - they were fantastic at Highbury because after 30 minutes the game was over yet they kept cheering us on. We owe them a result against Leicester.

"It is in our hands and we have good players. There is a bit of anxiety but they are professionals and we have a job to do."

Reid expects to be able to call on Phillips to link up once again with proven partner Niall Quinn.

He said: "I think Kevin will play against Leicester - he is a strong character and I would not be surprised if he is there."

With loan signing Patrick Mboma ruled out with a leg injury it looks as though Reid is ready to reunite the Republic of Ireland veteran with Phillips in a bid to end a goal famine which has been the real reason for Sunderland's disappointing season.

He said after the Arsenal game: "That's the best Niall Quinn has looked for a long time.

"I am delighted he has been able to have a rest and I think he caused Arsenal problems."

Phillips, who was Sunderland's star man at Highbury, despite playing with the discomfort of a slight stomach strain, is determined to play in a game which could win Sunderland vital breathing space in the scramble for safety.

He said: "We want to give our fans a happy Easter by beating Leicester. But it will be another tough one - Leicester are likely to have nothing to lose and they've been one of our bogey teams over the years.

"Ironically it's probably going to be THE game of the season when it comes down to it.

"It is a game we simply must win - a game in which we must show our best form and a game where we will need all the support from the terraces we can get."

Versatile Sunderland defender Darren Williams has called upon his team-mates to fight their way to safety without having to rely on other teams having poor results in the final run-in.

The Wearsiders now have the worst goal difference outside the bottom two and are only three points above third-bottom Ipswich Town.

He said: "We can't rely on other teams getting bad results - we have to start getting points on the board.

"It is in our own hands and if we can get a few wins under our belts we don't have to worry about what the other teams around us are doing."

He added: "The most important thing at the moment is for us to concentrate on our own performances, get back to winning ways and get back to scoring goals and putting chances away.

"Then we don't have to worry about what anybody else is doing.

"We've got to try to win every game we play now but it looks as though it could go to the wire.

"We have some six-pointer games coming up and hopefully those are the ones we can win."

Williams is sure that Phillips will soon have a change of fortune in front of goals and end his goal-less run.

He said: "Kevin is having a bit of a disappointing time at the moment, but even though he might not be scoring goals he still contributes to the team all the time.

"But we all know what Kevin is capable of - he will put one chance away and then the goals will start to flow again. But I think that goals can come from other areas of the team - other players had chances against Arsenal.

"Once we get going I'm sure we will start scoring a few."

United States captain Claudio Reyna left Highbury carrying a slight recurrence of his hamstring injury but he is expected to respond to treatment in time to play against a Leicester side hungering for a double after their 1-0 victory over Sunderland at Filbert Street at the beginning of November.

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