Wayne Bridge set for Sunderland medical

By Neal Wallace

Manchester City defender Wayne Bridge is set for a medical at Sunderland ahead of a proposed loan move.

The former Chelsea left-back, 31, has played only once for Roberto Mancini this season, in a 2-0 Carling Cup victory over Birmingham.

His opportunities at the Etihad Stadium have been limited since the arrival of Aleksander Kolarov.

Bridge, capped 36 times for England, was signed by now-Queens Park Rangers manager Mark Hughes in the January transfer window of 2009. He has since had a loan spell at Championship table-toppers West Ham.

Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill made a move for the experienced player after seeing his defensive resources further stretched by the loss of Wes Brown to a suspected ligament injury on Sunday (January 29th).

Bridge played 151 times for Southampton before a big-money move to Chelsea in 2003.