PADDY McNAIR will return to Sunderland’s squad for tomorrow’s crunch relegation clash at Bolton Wanderers.

McNair has been sidelined since New Year’s Day with a groin problem, but having played for an hour of Friday’s reserves defeat to Manchester City, the Northern Irishman will be back in the senior squad at the Macron Stadium.

With Chris Coleman set to make changes in the wake of Saturday’s 2-0 home defeat to Brentford, Lamine Kone, Adam Matthews and Jonny Williams are all set to start in the starting line-up tomorrow after featuring on the bench at the weekend.

Coleman said: “Paddy will be back (training) with us today. He had a game on Friday for the Under-23s, which was good for him.

“He’s got a chance to be involved, and Lamine also. Adam and Jonny obviously came off the bench, and they’re back after being out.

“Marc Wilson is not ready, he’s not available, and unfortunately I don’t think Kaz (LuaLua) will be right either. He was unlucky. He already had a bad ankle, which he was carrying, and unfortunately he got another kick on it on Friday. I don’t think he’s going to be available tomorrow.”

Sunderland were brushed aside far too easily as they lost at the weekend, and with Bolton sure to offer another stern test tomorrow, Coleman admits it will be helpful to have McNair and Kone’s physical attributes back in the team.

He said: “If you look at the Championship, and what makes up most of the teams in this division, it’s a very physical league.

“They’re two big boys, and when they’re physically and mentally ready, I definitely think they’ll add to us. They’ll strengthen us, for sure.

“Sometimes you look at us, and we probably look a bit short and small compared to the opposition, so if you put a McNair or a Kone in there, it helps. They’re big, physical boys, and that definitely helps.”