GOALKEEPER Thomas Myhre is vowing to resurrect his career as he emerges from a year-long "nightmare'' at Sunderland.
The 29-year-old Norwegian international, signed by Peter Reid on a free transfer from Turkish side Besiktas last summer, makes his comeback tonight in the Reserves' home game with Blackburn at Durham City.
Myhre, plagued by a thigh problem, played the last of his three games for the Black Cats at Bolton in October, when he picked up an injury which has effectively sidelined him ever since.
After a series of aborted returns, he finally underwent surgery in May, and is now ready to press Mart Poom for the No 1 spot.
Myhre, made available on a free transfer at the end of last season, said: "I was very conscious of taking things slowly because I'd broken down in several of my other comeback attempts.
"Things have gone well this time. I've played in a practice game in training and I'm kicking the ball again.
"I may not quite be 100 per cent when it comes to kicking, but my confidence will grow with games."
In January, Howard Wilkinson added Estonian international Poom to a squad which already included Thomas Sorensen, Jurgen Macho and Michael Ingham, as well as Myhre.
But with Sorensen and Macho having left the Stadium of Light as part of the desperate cost-cutting forced by relegation, Myhre has moved back up the pecking order under Mick McCarthy.
He said: "At the moment, all I'm thinking about is my fitness. Once that is right, I'll start looking towards getting my career back on track.
"It has been a nightmare for me. I haven't been able to do anything for the club. Whatever people may think, I'm not happy unless I'm playing. I still have a lot to prove here."
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