Dion Dublin and Mark Schwarzer praised Sunderland’s character, recruitment and second-half response at Everton
Match of the Day pundits praised Sunderland’s character, recruitment and second-half improvement after the Black Cats came from behind to beat Everton 3-1 at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Régis Le Bris’ side fell behind in the first half, but responded brilliantly after the break to take all three points back to Wearside. Brian Brobbey dragged Sunderland level with a superb finish before Enzo Le Fée completed the turnaround. Wilson Isidor then sealed the win in stoppage time after excellent work from Habib Diarra.
The victory kept Sunderland’s European hopes alive heading into the final day of the season, but it also underlined one of the defining themes of their campaign. The Black Cats have now taken 22 points from losing positions this season - the best record in the Premier League. Analysing Sunderland’s improvement after the break, former goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer highlighted the way Le Bris’ side became more aggressive without the ball and forced Everton into mistakes.
“More energy, higher line, pushed up on Everton,” Schwarzer said on Match of the Day. “Didn’t allow them too much time on the ball. And by doing so, they were able to force errors. And they capitalised. I mean, Le Fée and Brobbey up front were... You can see how far forward they were. It’s just a hopeful ball clearance. It’s a bad touch. And the ball pops down. The ball’s really good. And Brobbey, what a striker. That’s a proper striker.”
Brobbey’s equaliser was one of the big moments of the game, with the Dutch striker showing strength to hold off James Tarkowski before producing a composed finish past Jordan Pickford. Dion Dublin was impressed by Brobbey’s physicality and calmness in front of goal, particularly given Tarkowski’s reputation as one of the Premier League’s more powerful centre-backs. “And Tarkowski here, he prides himself on being strong and powerful,” Dublin said. “And he just gets bounced off the ball there. And I like the patience in the finish. You know, really good patience.”
Schwarzer also pointed to Le Bris’ substitutions as a major reason Sunderland went on to win the game. Chris Rigg, Habib Diarra and Wilson Isidor were all introduced in the second half, and each played a part in the late attacking surge that eventually took the game away from Everton.
“Yeah, strength on the ball,” Schwarzer said. “And then obviously the substitutions made a massive difference as well. Just more energy, more pace. And players forward. Getting players forward. Rigg, Diarra, Isidor. All three of them came on. All three of them directly involved with the second goal. Yeah, a little touch. A bit fortunate. Le Fée’s shot on goal. Takes a slight deflection.”
Isidor then wrapped up the win late on, converting at the back post after Diarra’s cross. Schwarzer felt Sunderland’s third goal again showed the impact of the players introduced from the bench, as well as the away side’s desire to attack the space behind Everton.
“And again, when you look at the third goal, all three of those players are heavily involved,” Schwarzer added. “Of course, the movement again. The desire to get in behind was there. And Everton have got numbers. Keane, for some reason, lets the ball go. Coleman’s caught out of position. Doesn’t realise someone’s behind him. And it’s a simple finish in the end.”
Sunderland also needed Robin Roefs to come up with a key save at 2-1, with the Dutch goalkeeper once again producing an important moment when his side needed him. Schwarzer felt Roefs deserved credit for the way he stood up and made himself difficult to beat. “I mean, your goalkeeper’s staying big,” Schwarzer said. “And Roefs has been absolutely fantastic for them this season. And that’s a brilliant save. I mean, I know it hits him, but he stays big. And he watches it all the way.”
Gabby Logan then pointed towards Sunderland’s league-leading record for points gained from losing positions, linking it to the character Le Bris has built within his squad. “And Le Bris talked there about characters in the dressing room,” Logan said. “And you need that if you’re going to hold the honour of being top of this particular event. Most points gained from losing positions. That goes to Sunderland this season, 22 points. And that shows the character of the manager as well.”
Dublin agreed and singled out Granit Xhaka as one of Sunderland’s most important signings, praising the influence he has had on a young squad during their first season back in the Premier League. “Yeah, the manager and the characters that he wants in the dressing room,” Dublin said. “The characters he wants to manage. I mean, one of the best signings is Xhaka by a long way. He’s going there. He said, this is what we did there. This is what we did there. Don’t do that. Don’t do this. Let’s work together. And they’ve been absolutely outstanding.”
Logan also highlighted another impressive Sunderland statistic, with the Black Cats’ points total standing out among clubs promoted via the play-offs over the last 20 seasons. Sunderland finished 24 points behind Leeds United and Burnley last season before winning promotion at Wembley, making their Premier League campaign even more impressive.
“And another stat which points to character is most points after promotion via the play-offs,” Logan said. “Now, don’t forget, this is in the last 20 seasons. They were 24 points off Leeds and Burnley last season. They had a lot of catching up to do. This points to recruitment.”
Schwarzer felt Sunderland had got their recruitment “absolutely spot on”, crediting the club for strengthening the squad quickly and giving Le Bris enough quality to compete at Premier League level straight away.“Yeah, absolutely,” Schwarzer said. “And I think whenever a team gets promoted, the first thing you look at is, okay, how can we improve the squad that we’ve got?
“Where do we get players in that are able to help us with an opportunity to stay in the Premier League? They got it absolutely spot on. They’ve brought in a lot of players. So, there’s a lot of credit to the management, to the recruitment, to gel them all together in such a quick period of time and to get the points on the board that they have. They’ve been great to watch.”
The result means Sunderland head into the final day still in contention to qualify for major European competition for the first time since the 1970s. The Black Cats played in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup in 1973-74 after lifting the FA Cup, but have been without major European football for more than four decades. Le Bris’ side, who only won promotion through the play-offs last season, can still finish as high as seventh after a remarkable first campaign back in the Premier League.
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