Knee injury for Reyna adds to Sunderland's problems

The Sunderland midfielder Claudio Reyna faces an anxious wait to discover the extent of his knee injury. The United States international limped away from the Reebok Stadium on Monday night after apparently damaging knee ligaments during the 1-1 draw with Bolton Wanderers.

Reyna was sent for a scan yesterday to assess the extent of the problem, but both the player and his manager, Howard Wilkinson, will have to bide their time after the initial examination proved inconclusive. Doctors will wait until the swelling around the injury has settled down before delivering their verdict, but the early signs were not good.

"Claudio has been in for a scan but it did not show the full extent of the injury," said Wilkinson. "We need to wait until the knee settles down. He will go in for further tests when that happens, so at the moment we're not really much further forward."

Reyna was clearly in some pain after he went down following an innocuous challenge on Bolton's Gareth Farrelly in the first half, and it soon became apparent the injury was more than a simple twist. He left the stadium on crutches and could be absent from Sunderland's line-up for some time.

The news on Reyna's injury came on the day 36-year-old Niall Quinn consulted a specialist over the back problem he fears could bring an end to his career. Quinn has struggled for more than 18 months to overcome the niggling injury, but is now facing up to the fact his playing days may be over.

Bolton have fined Stig Tofting two weeks' wages as the Danish World Cup midfielder waits for his future to be decided by an appeal court. They have punished Tofting after he pleaded guilty to assault in Copenhagen this month.

The Premiership club will be entitled to fire Tofting if he breaches his contract by being sent to jail and the midfielder's best hope could be that the courts defer sentence until the end of the season.

Yesterday Tofting decided to appeal against the length of the sentence after consultation with Bolton officials who are angry that the incident in a Copenhagen restaurant has left them facing the loss of his services.

The Wanderers chairman, Phil Gartside, feels Tofting let himself down with his behaviour and the penalty, although not disclosed, is the biggest they can impose in the circumstances.

The England defender Wayne Bridge was yesterday set to have an x-ray on the ankle he injured in his 100th consecutive game for Southampton.

Bridge suffered the problem in Sunday's 4-2 Premiership win over Fulham and is now in danger of missing his first match for two-and-a-half years. The 22-year-old full-back has started every Saints match since February 2000 but could miss Saturday's trip to Manchester United.