STEELY Sunderland defender Emerson Thome hopes to be able to give himself the perfect 30th birthday present at the end of this month - the chance to join the battle for Premiership safety.

But the Brazilian centre half, who had a second knee cartilage operation in January, knows from painful experience that he must temper his enthusiasm and avoid a premature return to first-team action.

Thome was given the green light last week to start running, and his progress is being closely monitored by the club's medical staff, who are being ultra-cautious after his breakdown following an initial operation this season.

He admitted: "I don't want to rush it this time. It was my second operation on the same injury and I need to be sure when I come back.

"I would rather wait a couple of weeks longer before returning than risk having my playing career cut short by two or three years because I have come back too soon and caused long-lasting problems."

He added: "You have to take care with this injury because it can damage your quality of life after football."

The £4.5m club record buy from Chelsea became the cornerstone of the Sunderland defence last season, establishing an excellent partnership with the ever-consistent Jody Craddock.

But this season, after playing in two of the first three games, he was out of action for nearly two months recovering from an operation on his knee. He then played ten games before aggravating the old injury and requiring further surgery.

Thome, nicknamed The Wall in his home country for his steadfast defending, will have been out for close on three months if he manages to push his way back into contention by the time of his birthday on Saturday, March 30, when Sunderland are away to Arsenal.

He said: "I have been out for over two months since the second operation.

"If things go OK I hope I can get back into training with the first team in two or three weeks.

"I am still ambitious and I want to come back a stronger person for this - and I want to finish the season playing."

Thome, however, knows he cannot afford to take any risks with an injury which could threaten his career if he returns too soon to the arduous duties of a top-flight central defender.

He explained: "I was playing through the injury at the start of the season and I was quite happy after the first operation that I could come back.

"I felt the team needed me and I wanted to come back but sometimes you don't realise when you are doing the wrong thing.

"I rushed my recovery and suffered another tear in the cartilage, which had to be repaired again.

"There was a little bit of a complication when my knee became inflamed and I had to stay on crutches two or three weeks longer than after the previous operation.

"The progress has been slower after the second operation, but that was the right thing to do.

"Now I have started running laps and the next step will be to test my knee with twisting and turning exercises."

Thome knows that even when he is given the all-clear he will find it harder to regain his first team place following the signing of Swedish international Joachim Bjorklund.

He said: "I know it will be difficult for me to get back into the team but it is up to me to show the manager when I'm back that I'm stronger than ever and give him a tough selection decision to make."

Bjorklund, who has missed the last two games after picking up a hamstring injury in the 2-1 defeat at Tottenham at the beginning of the month, is expected to be available for Saturday's crucial home game against Southampton, when Peter Reid's men will be determined to win three vital points in their campaign for Premiership safety.

Reid is also hoping that his star striker, Kevin Phillips, who missed the 4-0 defeat at Chelsea with a knee strain, will also be fit to return, along with midfielder Claudio Reyna (hamstring) and Julio Arca (ankle), while Republic of Ireland international Jason McAteer will be back after serving a one-match suspension.

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