{"id":610451,"date":"2022-03-02T09:48:17","date_gmt":"2022-03-02T14:48:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/?p=610451"},"modified":"2022-03-02T09:48:17","modified_gmt":"2022-03-02T14:48:17","slug":"three-sunderland-players-close-to-returning-to-aid-promotion-bid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2022\/03\/02\/three-sunderland-players-close-to-returning-to-aid-promotion-bid\/","title":{"rendered":"Three Sunderland Players Close to Returning to Aid Promotion Bid"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Due to a disastrous run of results since the turn of the year, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2022\/02\/22\/sunderlands-attacking-threat-must-be-unleashed\/\" target=\"_self\">Sunderland<\/a> face an uphill battle to achieve automatic promotion. However, following their 3-0 win at <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2021\/12\/19\/oxford-united-loss-wigan-athletic-covid\/\" target=\"_self\">Wigan Athletic<\/a> on Saturday, their play-off hopes remain intact. On the back of this morale-boosting victory, three key Sunderland players have now returned to training following injury to aid the Black Cats&#8217; chances of gaining promotion from League One.<\/p>\n<p>In news that will delight new head coach <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2022\/02\/11\/sunderland-appoint-alex-neil-head-coach\/\" target=\"_self\">Alex Neil<\/a> and Sunderland&#8217;s fans, Aiden McGeady, Luke O&#8217;Nien, and Nathan Broadhead have today returned to training following injury.<\/p>\n<h2>Three Key Sunderland Players Return to Training Following Injury<\/h2>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udcf8 On the way back \ud83d\udcaa<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SAFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#SAFC<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/w6mUhvLJey\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/w6mUhvLJey<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Sunderland AFC (@SunderlandAFC) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SunderlandAFC\/status\/1498677677644988423?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">March 1, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Aiden McGeady Returns to Training but This Could Be His Final Season on Wearside Amongst Sunderland Players<\/h3>\n<p>Veteran winger Aiden McGeady signed a one-year contract extension last summer; however, the former Republic of Ireland International has struggled for game time so far this season. Recent reports in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/sport\/football\/17781745\/sunderland-axe-aiden-mcgeady-black-cats\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Sun<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sunderlandecho.com\/sport\/football\/sunderland-afc\/three-players-set-for-safc-exit-with-cats-to-rival-six-clubs-for-youth-striker-3588266\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Sunderland Echo<\/a> suggest that the Black Cats could part ways with the skillful attacker when his contract ends.<\/p>\n<p>McGeady, who signed for Sunderland in 2017 has struggled with a knee injury this season but may now be on the verge of a return. Despite reports of his possible departure, McGeady still has the ability to be a key player for the remainder of his time on Wearside.<\/p>\n<h3>&#8216;Mr. Versitile&#8217; Luke O&#8217;Nien Back Following a Difficult Time Out Injured<\/h3>\n<p>Sunderland&#8217;s &#8216;Mr. Versitile&#8217; is also back. O&#8217;Nien, who has played in several positions since arriving in 2018, has been missing with a shoulder injury for several months. He has also shared his frustration and how he has struggled mentally whilst being on the sidelines. In a post on his Instagram page, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/lukeonien\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">O&#8217;Nien said<\/a>:\u00a0&#8220;I see myself as quite a strong person so thought I\u2019d be ok dealing with a long-term injury. I didn\u2019t think that being sidelined would affect me.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;However, I was wrong, and being completely honest I\u2019ve struggled. I always thought if I got injured it would be quite straightforward. Do the necessary rehab and get stronger until I was fit to play again.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I felt lonely, I lost the daily connection I had with my teammates as I rehabbed in isolation. I started to question my identity. I\u2019m a footballer. Who am I if I can\u2019t play football? Being injured led to me feeling lonely, to not wanting to get out of bed in the morning, to not wanting to be social. I became withdrawn, frustrated and angry.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>O&#8217;Nien Advises What He Changed to Help Himself<\/h3>\n<p>O&#8217;Nien would go on to say what had helped him get through this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CaYPNjhofLa\/?utm_medium=copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">difficult stage in his career<\/a> and life:\u00a0&#8220;Here are the things that helped me: Get more certainty by making new daily routines &amp; setting\/working towards targets.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Having structure in the day is really important and definitely helps.\u00a0Stay connected with people in a different way. For example, while I\u2019ve been injured me and my friend have been helping the\u00a0Sunderland\u00a0academy players.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Re-define who you are. You can&#8217;t define yourself by something that can get taken away or will stop one day. You\u2019re not just \u2018a footballer\u2019 you are a person who plays football amongst other things.\u00a0Contribute in a different way. You may not be able to play but there are other ways you can help the team succeed. Maybe you can support other players or the club in some other way.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"taboolaMidArticle\" class=\"taboola recommended-stories tm-commercial-integrations-taboola populated\" style=\"font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none; background-color: #ffffff; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; color: #141414; font-family: 'Open Sans', sans-serif; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; text-decoration-thickness: initial;\" data-config=\"{&quot;mode&quot;:&quot;thumbnails-mm&quot;,&quot;componentType&quot;:&quot;taboola&quot;,&quot;injectionConditions&quot;:[{&quot;condition&quot;:&quot;stopONAdvertorialContent&quot;},{&quot;condition&quot;:&quot;stopONAffiliateContent&quot;},{&quot;condition&quot;:&quot;stopONActiveLegalProceedings&quot;}],&quot;slotType&quot;:&quot;taboola&quot;,&quot;referenceNode&quot;:&quot;.article-body &gt; p:nth-of-type(8)&quot;,&quot;hideOnSensitiveArticle&quot;:true,&quot;relativePos&quot;:&quot;after&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;taboolaMidArticle&quot;,&quot;selector&quot;:&quot;taboola-mid-article-thumbnails&quot;,&quot;targetType&quot;:&quot;mix&quot;,&quot;placement&quot;:&quot;Mid Article Thumbnails&quot;,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;taboolaDesktopMidArticleThumbnails&quot;}\" data-taboola-placeholder=\"\" data-response-start=\"3921.4000000059605\" data-type=\"taboola\" data-response-end=\"31043\">\n<div id=\"taboola-mid-article-thumbnails\" class=\"taboola trc_related_container trc_spotlight_widget trc_elastic trc_elastic_thumbnails-mm \" data-taboola-mode=\"thumbnails-mm\" data-placement-name=\"Mid Article Thumbnails\">\n<div class=\"trc_rbox_container\">\n<div id=\"trc_wrapper_90128\" class=\"trc_rbox thumbnails-mm trc-content-sponsored \">\n<div id=\"outer_90128\" class=\"trc_rbox_outer\">\n<div id=\"rbox-t2m\" class=\"trc_rbox_div trc_rbox_border_elm\">\n<div id=\"internal_trc_90128\">\n<h3 class=\"thumbBlock_holder\"><span style=\"color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif;\">Nathan Broadhead Finishes Rehab at Everton and Returns to Sunderland\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"videoCube trc_spotlight_item origin-default thumbnail_start syndicatedItem textItem videoCube_1_child trc-first-recommendation trc-spotlight-first-recommendation trc_excludable \" data-item-id=\"~~V1~~-4018778729381424263~~kTGWXZNr9ugfU-tkH11V-wEpS7oSZUPu3Zed-N7V6mDTxvAnL2wqac4MyzR7uD46gj3kUkbS3FhelBtnsiJV6MhkDZRZzzIqDobN6rWmCPA3hYz5D3PLat6nhIftiT1lwdxwdlxkeV_Mfb3eos_TQavImGhxk0e7psNAZxHJ9RIWJpVH9WX0kw9oBJy4WyQCu8in54n9hKndY4Wp0FwrDlQYxLuchX6cL-D7v19ZKx4inBXiYYUroqCuReRbOZZ_RdbgwlJdnqyroTPEQNNEnxjAxs29-75XTHwV1iKvH64\" data-item-title=\"England Residents are Rushing to get a Power of Attorney! Here is Why!\" data-item-thumb=\"http:\/\/cdn.taboola.com\/libtrc\/static\/thumbnails\/95469923dcb0bbefcd45492f1faeffa2.jpg\" data-item-syndicated=\"true\">On-loan <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2022\/02\/20\/playmaker-james-rodriguez-everton-stay\/\" target=\"_self\">Everton<\/a> forward Nathan Broadhead is also back in training. The 23-year-old suffered a hamstring injury in the Carabao Cup quarter-final against <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2022\/02\/25\/arsenal-emerge-unscathed-from-the-company-of-wolves\/\" target=\"_self\">Arsenal<\/a>. Before his injury, Broadhead was a striker in form having scored five goals in four games. Returning to Everton to undergo treatment and rehabilitation, Broadhead finally returned to Wearside last week and has begun training.<\/p>\n<p class=\"videoCube trc_spotlight_item origin-default thumbnail_start syndicatedItem textItem videoCube_1_child trc-first-recommendation trc-spotlight-first-recommendation trc_excludable \" data-item-id=\"~~V1~~-4018778729381424263~~kTGWXZNr9ugfU-tkH11V-wEpS7oSZUPu3Zed-N7V6mDTxvAnL2wqac4MyzR7uD46gj3kUkbS3FhelBtnsiJV6MhkDZRZzzIqDobN6rWmCPA3hYz5D3PLat6nhIftiT1lwdxwdlxkeV_Mfb3eos_TQavImGhxk0e7psNAZxHJ9RIWJpVH9WX0kw9oBJy4WyQCu8in54n9hKndY4Wp0FwrDlQYxLuchX6cL-D7v19ZKx4inBXiYYUroqCuReRbOZZ_RdbgwlJdnqyroTPEQNNEnxjAxs29-75XTHwV1iKvH64\" data-item-title=\"England Residents are Rushing to get a Power of Attorney! Here is Why!\" data-item-thumb=\"http:\/\/cdn.taboola.com\/libtrc\/static\/thumbnails\/95469923dcb0bbefcd45492f1faeffa2.jpg\" data-item-syndicated=\"true\">Sunderland need all their players fit and ready to contribute having won just two games this calendar year and have slipped down the League One table and appear to be out of contention for automatic promotion.<\/p>\n<p class=\"videoCube trc_spotlight_item origin-default thumbnail_start syndicatedItem textItem videoCube_1_child trc-first-recommendation trc-spotlight-first-recommendation trc_excludable \" data-item-id=\"~~V1~~-4018778729381424263~~kTGWXZNr9ugfU-tkH11V-wEpS7oSZUPu3Zed-N7V6mDTxvAnL2wqac4MyzR7uD46gj3kUkbS3FhelBtnsiJV6MhkDZRZzzIqDobN6rWmCPA3hYz5D3PLat6nhIftiT1lwdxwdlxkeV_Mfb3eos_TQavImGhxk0e7psNAZxHJ9RIWJpVH9WX0kw9oBJy4WyQCu8in54n9hKndY4Wp0FwrDlQYxLuchX6cL-D7v19ZKx4inBXiYYUroqCuReRbOZZ_RdbgwlJdnqyroTPEQNNEnxjAxs29-75XTHwV1iKvH64\" data-item-title=\"England Residents are Rushing to get a Power of Attorney! Here is Why!\" data-item-thumb=\"http:\/\/cdn.taboola.com\/libtrc\/static\/thumbnails\/95469923dcb0bbefcd45492f1faeffa2.jpg\" data-item-syndicated=\"true\">The skill and creativity of McGeady, the versatility and work rate of O&#8217;Nien, and the goal threat of Broadhead could be the difference between playing in League One or the Championship next season.<\/p>\n<p data-item-id=\"~~V1~~-4018778729381424263~~kTGWXZNr9ugfU-tkH11V-wEpS7oSZUPu3Zed-N7V6mDTxvAnL2wqac4MyzR7uD46gj3kUkbS3FhelBtnsiJV6MhkDZRZzzIqDobN6rWmCPA3hYz5D3PLat6nhIftiT1lwdxwdlxkeV_Mfb3eos_TQavImGhxk0e7psNAZxHJ9RIWJpVH9WX0kw9oBJy4WyQCu8in54n9hKndY4Wp0FwrDlQYxLuchX6cL-D7v19ZKx4inBXiYYUroqCuReRbOZZ_RdbgwlJdnqyroTPEQNNEnxjAxs29-75XTHwV1iKvH64\" data-item-title=\"England Residents are Rushing to get a Power of Attorney! Here is Why!\" data-item-thumb=\"http:\/\/cdn.taboola.com\/libtrc\/static\/thumbnails\/95469923dcb0bbefcd45492f1faeffa2.jpg\" data-item-syndicated=\"true\">Main Photo<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"RKl8hh_hSttmFmW5CjWN8Q\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.co.uk\/detail\/1236685982\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'RKl8hh_hSttmFmW5CjWN8Q',sig:'eZW6sfVGrRXSi0TlFZh7z_YaTjCveW6X5ypVY30TWyY=',w:'594px',h:'400px',items:'1236685982',caption: true ,tld:'co.uk',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Three key Sunderland players are close to returning to aid the club&#8217;s promotion bid  having began training again following injury.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":135,"featured_media":610525,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32,34,22],"tags":[3171,3450,8829],"class_list":["post-610451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-league-football","category-league12","category-sunderland","tag-aiden-mcgeady","tag-luke-onien","tag-nathan-broadhead"],"modified_by":"Tom Cunningham, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610451","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/135"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=610451"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610451\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/610525"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=610451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=610451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=610451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}