LEE JOHNSON has revealed he will have to make “a couple of key changes” to his Sunderland line-up for tomorrow’s League One game at Rotherham United as a result of the bumps and bruises that were sustained during Tuesday’s Carabao Cup win at QPR.

Denver Hume is definitely out of the trip to the New York Stadium, with Sunderland’s medical staff awaiting the results of a scan on the full-back’s injured ankle.

Johnson did not want to reveal too much about the other injury issues when he spoke to the press this morning, but he confirmed he was expecting to have other absentees in South Yorkshire.

Johnson said: “We’re just awaiting scan results (on Hume), but it doesn’t look good for the weekend, if I’m honest with you. We’ll have to see.

“Hopefully, he won’t be out too long. It’ll be disappointing for him, but it’s part of being a footballer. You’ve just got to bounce back.

“There were bumps and bruises (on Tuesday), it was a very physical game. The majority of those are just bumps and bruises.

“You want to keep your cards close to your chest in a game like this because there will be a couple of key changes to the team.

“Like I’ve always said, we’ve got to show that tactical agility with this squad, we really have. We’ve got to be able to play a five or a four, we’ve got to be able to one up front or two up front, an expansive 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1 compact. We’ve got to be able to do all of this, but still have a really clear idea and identity, as we do that.”

Nathan Broadhead will be another absentee tomorrow, with the on-loan striker still struggling with the hamstring injury that has sidelined him since the start of the month.

It was initially hoped that Broadhead would only be absent for a couple of weeks, but he will not be involved against Rotherham, although he should hopefully be back for the FA Cup first-round tie with Mansfield.

Johnson said: “It’s definitely been pushed back, in terms of the original prognosis. The timescale was relatively short, and we thought it was a best-case scenario, but the reality is that you’ve still got to take the player’s symptoms and the player’s feelings on board.

“He’s obviously been feeling something. I do feel like we’ve turned the corner now, and that’s probably just the time. Will he be fit for this weekend? No. Will he be fit for next weekend? I truly hope so.”