The 33-year-old missed Sunderland’s final pre-season friendly against Danish side FC Midjtylland last week after suffering a minor problem with the knee that has been at the root of his injury woes.
Di Canio: “Wes has improved over the last few days.
“Another few days and he can start joining in with the rest of the team in training.
“But for this game, we will not risk him because we have had that scenario in the past, and it is silly.
“We have four central defenders to choose from, and he (Brown) will be important during the season, so we must not risk him.
“Everyone knows that initially Wes wasn’t in my plans.
“But he came with us to Italy for 10 days for the training camp, and I decided to speak to him because I was very happy with the way he trained, and of course he is a very good professional and also a good footballer.
“I told him ‘I need you’, although I couldn’t say how many games he would play – maybe one, maybe 10, maybe more.
“Until he suffered the reaction, he had played in every pre-season game and did very well.”
Sunderland Premier League Fixtures
Saturday August 17
15:00 Premier League Sunderland v Fulham
Saturday August 24
15:00 Premier League Southampton v Sunderland
Saturday August 31
17:30 Premier League Crystal Palace v Sunderland
Saturday September 14
15:00 Premier League Sunderland v Arsenal
Saturday September 21
15:00 Premier League West Brom v Sunderland