Alan Shearer has finally delivered his verdict on Sunderland’s 3-0 win over West Ham
Alan Shearer has broken his silence on Sunderland’s Premier League opening day victory over West Ham, crediting the Black Cats for their ‘brilliant’ display.
The Newcastle United legend came in for criticism from some quarters after failing to say a word about the Black Cats’ outing on Saturday’s edition of Match of the Day, with fellow pundit Wayne Rooney instead solely assuming the task of analysing the contest.
What did Alan Shearer say about Sunderland’s 3-0 victory over West Ham?
In a conversation with host Gary Lineker, Shearer admitted that he was impressed with Sunderland’s showing, while still finding time to aim a couple of jibes at the Black Cats.
Addressing his silence on Match of the Day, he said: “I've got a bit of stick. Believe it or not, I have got a few Sunderland pals. My texts were going this morning, and they were like, ‘For f---- sake, why didn't you say anything positive against Sunderland? You just let Wayne Rooney do all the talking about Sunderland and you just went on about West Ham.’
“So, Sunderland were brilliant, the atmosphere was great, they deserved the three points. There you go. That sound alright?”
Lineker then looked to defend his colleague, interjecting: “Do you want to remind people, Alan, that the way Match of the Day works is that you designated a match each. Wayne Rooney would have done that game because he was designated that match... You were doing the Spurs-Burnley game, so your focus was on that. So it wasn't an anti-Sunderland, even though you are anti-Sunderland, let's be honest.”
Shearer then retorted: “Yeah, listen, they've been that long out of the Premier League, they forget how Match of the Day works, you see!”
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Lineker continued: “What a performance though, really. [Dan] Ballard, his clearance off the line, scoring a goal”, to which Shearer replied: “Yeah, they were brilliant. That [Ballard’s clearance] was fantastic. That was the game-changer, that, you know. Because if that goes in, it's very, very different. So for him to save that one off the line and then get a brilliant header as well.”
Lineker then turned his attention to the vocal home crowd at the Stadium of Light, adding: “The atmosphere as well seemed incredible in there. I remember when they used to play at Roker Park and they used to call it the Roker Roar, and it was quite special. What is it with you North East lads?”
For his part, Shearer couldn’t resist one more tongue-in-cheek jibe at Sunderland’s expense, replying: “Love our football. It's not in the same league as St James' Park!”
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