John Mensah has had the red card he received over the weekend in Sunderland's 2-0 defeat by Liverpool rescinded after an appeal.

The defender was facing a one-match suspension after being shown a straight red card by referee Kevin Friend after tangling with Luis Suarez.

Unhappy with the referee's decision, Sunderland launched an immediate appeal.

And an FA disciplinary meeting upheld their appeal and that Mensah is now free to face Manchester City on 3rd April.

Bruce told the club's official website: "We thank the Football Association for considering our appeal and naturally we're delighted he'll be available for the game against Manchester City."