Tonali issues revealed by Howe and the player "closest" to returning at Sunderland

The dust is settling on last night's 2-2 draw at Bayer Leverkusen, where we came back well in the second half and, in some ways, earned a precious point, but let a lead slip once again as Alejandro Grimaldo equalised late.

The big positives were Anthony Gordon's second-half display, our fightback following a poor first half, and Lewis Miley's first Champions League goal.

However, one concern in midfield was a below-par display from Sandro Tonali, who looked didn't look himself both on and off the ball at the BayArena.

Speaking after the match, Eddie Howe admitted that the Italian has had a tough few months that's left him feeling below his best physically and lacking rhythm after a bad illness was followed by a knock in last week's 2-2 draw with Tottenham.

“He’s [Tonali] had a little bit of a bitty last couple of months. He had a bad illness which really knocked him, then he came back to fitness.

"Then he got a knock, I think it was the Tottenham game, so he’s been a little bit in and out in terms of how he physically feels.

“I’d say he felt a little bit tired towards the end [against Bayer Leverkusen], that’s probably just because he hasn’t played the amount of time he would normally so it’s just about building his rhythm back.”

Tonali got through 90 minutes last night, having played just 48 minutes of football across our previous three games against Burnley, Spurs and Everton.

Elsewhere, the boss also commented on our injury situation, revealing that Nick Pope is the "closest" of our absent players to returning this Sunday, suggesting Sven Botman, Kieran Trippier, Will Osula and Emil Krafth are likely to miss out again.

“I’m not sure yet if we’ll have anyone back. Maybe not. There is a slight bit of uncertainty because we’ve still got a couple of days to see how things play out and I haven’t really been in contact with those guys for a few days, having travelled out to Germany. I think that’s where we are.

“I don’t know with Nick, in particular. We’ll have to wait and see. I think Nick is the closest of all the players who are currently out. But I’m not sure quite how he feels. We’ll have to see.”

Pope's return seems anything but certain, but it could be a good time to get the 6ft 6" stopper considering Aaron Ramsdale's reluctance to leave and Sunderland's height from set pieces.