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Everything you need to know about Sunderland U21s clash with their Stoke City counterparts in the Premier League 2
10-man Sunderland under-21s suffered late heartbreak against Stoke City after goalkeeper Isaac Allan was sent off during a dramatic Premier League 2 clash at Eppleton CW, losing 2-1 with practically the last kick of the game.
The young Black Cats, who had dominated large spells of the game, were left to rue missed chances and a costly red card as their search for consistency in the division continues.
The young Black Cats started the day 23rd, with four points from their opening five games – one win, one draw and three defeats – showing flashes of promise but still searching for greater consistency. Graeme Murty made several changes from the side that faced Gateshead in the National League Cup.
Goalkeeper Allan replaced Dan Cameron, while Joe Neild and Archie Lightfoot came into defence alongside Felix Holcroft and Jenson Jones. Jaydon Jones and captain Ben Middlemas kept their places in midfield, with Jack Whittaker recalled to add creativity. Rhys Walsh and Felix Scott were handed starts in attack alongside Timur Tutierov.
In total, Murty made five changes, naming a youthful and energetic side. Jake Waters returned to the bench after a year out with a serious knee injury, while first-team fringe players Abdoullah Ba, Jay Matete and Timothee Pembele were not involved with Harrison Jones with the first-team in London at Stamford Bridge.
Frantic start yields two goals during opening 10 minutes
Jaydon Jones registered the game’s first effort inside two minutes – firing just over the crossbar from the edge of the area after a bright start from Sunderland. The visitors responded by going direct, forcing goalkeeper Isaac Allan into a difficult moment when he raced out of his box, misjudged the bounce and fouled his man – earning an early yellow card. Moments later, Tutierov had strong penalty appeals waved away by referee Andrew Miller after going down under pressure inside the area.
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Sunderland lined up with two false nines, as Whittaker and Scott interchanged fluidly across the front line. Allan was almost caught out again soon after when his attempted clearance was charged down by a Stoke forward, drawing a few nervous gasps from the home crowd. The young Black Cats created the best chance of the opening 10 minutes when Whittaker slipped Tutierov through, but the Ukrainian’s tame effort was saved.
However, Sunderland didn’t have to wait long to strike – Whittaker broke the deadlock moments later with a smart right-footed finish after being set up by Tutierov. The lead lasted barely seconds, though, as Stoke equalised immediately from the restart through Chinonso Chibueze, who lashed an unstoppable effort past Allan.
Sunderland camp in Stoke City’s half
In the 17th minute, Sunderland came close to restoring their lead when Rhys Walsh burst down the right and picked out Tutierov, whose effort was agonisingly blocked on the line. Moments later, the lively forward carved out another golden opportunity – expertly bringing down Isaac Allan’s pinpoint pass before firing too close to Stoke goalkeeper Caleb Clothier. Felix Scott then missed another good chance after more sharp play.
Sunderland were by far the stronger side, spending much of the remainder of the first half camped inside Stoke City’s half. Tutierov continued to cause problems for the visitors, carving out several promising openings and arguably should have had at least three goals to his name, racing through on several occasions only to be thwarted by the Potters’ stopper. Captain Middlemas also grew increasingly influential as the half wore on – driving his team forward and forcing Caleb Clothier into a sharp save with a powerful strike that was hit too straight to find the net.
Stoke City showed brief flashes of life towards the end of the first half, but the sides went into the break level after Tutierov squandered another golden opportunity to restore Sunderland’s lead – curling his effort just wide of the upright after finding space inside the area.
Sunderland emerge unchanged after the break
Both Sunderland and Stoke City emerged from the interval unchanged, but it was the young Black Cats who started the second half on the front foot. Walsh did brilliantly down the right to tee up Scott, who had a huge chance to put Sunderland ahead but saw his low effort comfortably saved by Clothier. Moments later, Tutierov rattled the crossbar with a thunderous strike – only to be denied by the offside flag. The lively forward then finally found the net with a composed finish past the keeper, but once again the assistant’s flag was raised, a sequence of near misses that rather summed up his frustrating afternoon.
The game was briefly halted around the 55-minute mark after Sunderland goalkeeper Isaac Allan collided with an onrushing Stoke City forward, taking a knock to the head in the process. Thankfully, the former Lincoln City stopper was able to continue after treatment, having grown in confidence following a nervy opening spell.
As Sunderland pushed to retake the lead, Stoke threatened on the counter-attack, with the contest becoming increasingly open as both sides looked for a breakthrough. Rhys Walsh was replaced by Ethan Moore midway through the half as Graeme Murty looked to inject fresh energy into his attack.
Poor finishing and red card drama costs Sunderland
With 15 minutes remaining, Jake Waters was introduced for Timur Tutierov – marking his first appearance in 418 days following a serious knee injury sustained against Liverpool. The forward’s return was warmly received by teammates and supporters alike, capping an encouraging individual comeback in an otherwise finely balanced contest. Middlemas was withdrawn shortly after for Matthew Burns, making his first ever under-21s appearance.
With just nine minutes left to play, Sunderland goalkeeper Allen was shown a second yellow for rushing out of his box, similar to his mistake in the first half. Murty had already used all three subs, leaving defender Neild to go in goal. Waters had a good chance to win it after Moore’s cross from the right but it was spooned high and wide. There were seven minutes added on to the game by the officiating team with Stoke City nicking the game with just 20 seconds of added time remaining after a short corner was turned home by Raphael Otegbayo.
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