Leon Dajaku has been ruled out for Sunderland as they play Sheffield Wednesday in the first leg of their League One play-off tie tonight.

The Lowdown: Delayed return

It was reported that Dajaku was expected to return to Wearside on Monday following a spell out with illness, as the Stadium of Light faithful clinched a play-off place with a 1-0 win away at Morecambe on the final day.

They now face an Owls side that finished above them in the league table, with the winner playing either MK Dons or Wycombe Wanderers in the play-off final.

The Latest: Dajaku out

Speaking in his pre-game press conference ahead of the match (via The Chronicle), Alex Neil has unfortunately had to rule Dajaku out of the contest, as he continues his recovery from illness:

"Leon is making progress. He's done a couple of days in the gym, and he's getting there. He'll be a little bit longer - he's not done a lot recently.

"He's lost quite a bit of weight recently as well, so we are just trying to get him back up to speed."

The Verdict: Big blow

After hopes that he could return for the fixture, losing Dajaku once more is certainly a big blow for Neil and his team.

On top of his four goals and three assists in League One this season, he has picked up one man-of-the-match award, and also ranks highly among his teammates in terms of average shots, dribbles and crosses per game in the division (WhoScored).

Nonetheless, his added threat in and around the box would have been useful for the Black Cats to gain an advantage going into the second leg, but they will now have to try and find a way to win without him.

In other news, find out what big SAFC dilemma has now emerged here!