CONNOR WICKHAM and Adam Johnson return to the Sunderland side for this evening's Premier League home game with managerless QPR.
Wickham replaces Danny Graham from the side that drew at Swansea City last weekend, having recovered from the calf injury he sustained in the warm-up ahead of last week's FA Cup tie at Fulham.
Johnson was a second-half substitute in Saturday's 1-1 draw at the Liberty Stadium, but the England international gets the nod ahead of Ricky Alvarez, who drops down to the bench.
Gus Poyet is expected to stick with the 4-1-3-2 formation he fielded against the Swans, meaning Johnson and Jordi Gomez will play on either side of Seb Larsson in midfield.
QPR are without their leading goalscorer Charlie Austin, with the England hopeful having suffered a foot injury in last weekend's defeat to Southampton.
The visitors are still without a manager following the departure of Harry Redknapp, but with their owner, Tony Fernandes, tweeting that he is close to an appointment, Michael Laudrup has replaced Tim Sherwood as the favourite to take over at Loftus Road.
Sunderland (4-1-3-2): Pantilimon; Reveillere, Vergini, O'Shea, van Aanholt; Bridcutt; Johnson, Larsson, Gomez; Wickham, Defoe.
Subs: Mannone (gk), Brown, Coates, Agnew, Alvarez, Fletcher, Graham.
QPR (4-5-1): Green; Isla, Caulker, Ferdinand, Yun; Phillips, Henry, Barton, Kranjcar, Fer; Zamora.
Subs: McCarthy (gk), Traore, Hill, Wright-Phillips, Taarabt, Zarate, Doughty.
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