TONY MOWBRAY selected Aji Alese ahead of Dennis Cirkin for Sunderland’s win over Millwall yesterday because he felt the former West Ham defender’s physical presence would be crucial.

Having recovered from the foot injury that kept him out of Sunderland’s final five matches before the World Cup shutdown, Alese was restored to the Black Cats’ starting line-up at left-back yesterday.

His presence in the starting side meant Cirkin had to be content with a place on the bench, but Mowbray insists his selection decision should not be interpreted as an assessment of where the two players currently stand in the pecking order.

Instead, the Black Cats head coach insists it was a response to the aerial and physical challenges Millwall like to pose.

Mowbray said: “I had a conversation with Dennis before the game because he deserves to play. He’s been amazing since I came to the club, but we (were) playing Millwall and 63 per cent of their goals come from set plays. I just felt we needed Aji’s height and his strength in the air.

“It was just a decision I had to make, they’re difficult conversations. Niall Huggins didn't even make the bench and he was amazing against Birmingham, of course he's been out for a long time as well.
That's football, I can only put seven on the bench and 11 on the pitch.

“Trai Hume was really good against Birmingham as well and these are tough calls, but it's a good place to be when you're leaving out players who you genuinely believe should be in there, but they're not because of the quality you've got in front of them.”