Sunderland striker Connor Wickham has expressed his delight at returning to first-team action on Sunday.
The 19-year-old came on as a half-time substitute in the Black Cats' 2-1 away defeat to Norwich City in the Premier League.
"It's been a long four or five months for me and it was great to be on the pitch," he told Sunderland's official website.
"I've spoken to the gaffer (manager Martin O'Neill) before and he told me what I had to do, so I have worked my socks off in training and thankfully he had faith in me today.
"The manager has told me to hold the ball up and be more aggressive, and I've been doing that more in training and that's why my chance came. When I came on I thought I did that; now it's about getting that match sharpness."
Wickham joined Sunderland from Ipswich Town in 2011.
