Manu Tuilagi to make latest injury return after being named alongside Matt Toomua for Leicester Tigers vs Munster

England international returns three months after undergoing knee surgery and starts alongside Australia international Toomua for only the second time

Manu Tuilagi and Matt Toomua will start for Leicester Tigers against Munster on Sunday (Getty)

Manu Tuilagi will make his latest comeback from injury on Sunday when Leicester Tigers look to avenge last weekend’s heavy defeat by Munster in their return European Champions Cup fixture at Welford Road, with the centre partnering Australia international Matt Toomua in a double-boost for the Premiership side.

Both Tuilagi and Toomua have missed the majority of the season so far, just as they did in 2016/7, but are named in the starting line-up for Sunday evening’s crucial Pool Four encounter in what is just their second start together since the Wallaby arrived in Leicester at the start of last season.

Tuliagi returns after damaging the meniscus in his knee in September after just one game back for the Tigers following eight months out, and will hope to rebuild not just his club career but also his role in the England set-up, having made just one Test appearance in the last three years.

The 26-year-old underwent surgery on the injury that ruled him out of England’s three autumn internationals, as well as the start of the European campaign, but he returns at a time when Leicester participation in the tournament beyond January hinges on getting a result against Munster this weekend.

Toomua meanwhile has also been sidelined with a knee injury after suffering bone-bruising towards the end of October, and the return of both international centres will give the Tigers a much-needed bite in midfield that they have lacked too often during the last 12 months.

“Matt and Manu have been training hard, they’re world-class operators and it’s great to have them back,” said head coach Matt O’Connor after naming the centre pairing in his side that will look to make up for last week’s 33-10 defeat to the Irish province at Thomond Park.

O’Connor’s other selection dilemmas have been solved, with the Australian deciding to keep Jonny May on the wing and name Mathew Tait at full-back in place of the injured Telusa Veainu – who broke his jaw last weekend in a nasty collision with Munster wing Andrew Conway – while Tom Youngs continues at hooker despite the presence of Wallabies forward Tatafu Polota-Nau.

“We prepared well for last weekend but we didn’t deliver on the day and were beaten by a very committed Munster side,” O’Connor added.

Tuilagi has played just twice this calendar year (Getty)

“Now we are looking at a big reaction at home this week. Pool 4 is the tightest of all the groups in the competition and all four teams still have everything to play for.”

Munster meanwhile have named recently-capped Ireland wing Darren Sweetnam in place of the absent Conway, while hooker Rhys Marshall is also absent after undergoing similar return-to-play protocols as Conway due to a concussion. Marshall’s absence results in Kevin O’Bryne making his first European start, while both Keith Earls and Niall Scannell are fit enough to return to the replacements after recovering from hamstring and thumb injuries respectively.