SUNDERLAND have been boosted by the news that Connor Wickham will be out for weeks rather than months after the teenage striker suffered a knee injury in last weekend's defeat at Manchester United.

Wickham, who arrived on Wearside in an £8.1m deal from Ipswich Town in the summer, was stretchered off just five minutes into the game at Old Trafford with manager Steve Bruce fearing the 18-year-old had damaged ligaments after going down in an off-the-ball incident.

But scans have revealed that the former Ipswich Town forward has suffered no serious damage and will be available for selection much sooner than anticipated after beginning a rehabilitation programme.

The news will be a huge relief to Black Cats boss Bruce, who has seen no fewer than five of his first team squad suffer serious knee injuries in the last year - a situation that forced the club to evaluate its training facilities and rehabilitation programmes.

Titus Bramble, Michael Turner, David Meyler, Craig Gordon and Frazier Campbell have all spent several months on the sidelines and a similar injury to Wickham would have created a major problem for Bruce.

Aside from Wickham, Nicklas Bendtner and Ji Dong-Won are the club's only out-and-out strikers, so a serious injury to Wickham would have left the Black Cats boss extremely light on attacking options.

The news will also come as a relief to Wickham, who scored his first goal for the club in the 2-2 draw with Aston Villa two weeks ago.

* Sunderland's Under-18s have been drawn against Nottingham Forest in the FA Youth Cup.

Kevin Ball's side will host Forest in the third round of the competition in a match that must be played before December 17.