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Sky Sports commentator Andy Hinchcliffe lauded one particular player in Sunderland‘s 3-1 win over Birmingham City, calling him a “nightmare to defend against”.
Sunderland win at home to Birmingham
The Black Cats were back in Championship action on Saturday afternoon, as they welcomed Wayne Rooney’s Birmingham side to the Stadium of Light. Tony Mowbray‘s side were just outside the playoff positions before the game took place, but the hosts knew that victory would put them into the top six ahead of the rest of the league action later in the day.
It proved to be an excellent day at the office for Sunderland, who were comfortably the better side and eventually saw their class shine through, having initially taken the lead through key man Jobe Bellingham, whose good form this season continues.
The Black Cats were pegged back when Koji Miyoshi equalised before half-time, before Dion Sanderson’s own goal for the visitors put Mowbray’s men back in front. The victory was sealed later in the second half, as Jack Clarke’s neat footwork and cross led to Adil Aouchiche making it 3-1 late in the day.
It was another game that suggested Sunderland are again the real deal this season, with back-to-back seasons in the playoff positions looking more than possible, as they look to go one better than they did last time around.
Jack Clarke stars for Sunderland
Speaking on commentary for Sky Sports in the 77th minute, straight after he had assisted Aouchiche to make it 3-1, Hinchcliffe heaped praise on Clarke’s ability, saying he is a “nightmare to defend against”.
This was yet another impressive outing from Clarke, who continues to stand out as one of Sunderland’s most important players, with his quality in the final third making him such a dangerous figure for opposition sides. According to Sofascore, the 22-year-old played four key passes and won nine duels against Birmingham, highlighting the creative and battling quality on show from him, and he also completed 100 per cent of his long balls, playing three in total..
Sunderland’s goalscorers so far this season |
Total |
---|---|
Jack Clarke |
9 |
Daniel Neil |
3 |
Jobe Bellingham |
3 |
Abdoullah Ba |
2 |
Chris Rigg |
2 |
Pierre Ekwah |
2 |
Dan Ballard |
2 |
Adil Aouchiche |
1 |
Bradley Dack |
1 |
Niall Huggins |
1 |
Trai Hume |
1 |
The Englishman is going to be so vital to Sunderland’s hopes of going up this season, so they must keep their fingers crossed that he stays fit throughout the campaign, and the Black Cats shouldn’t even entertain the idea of him potentially moving elsewhere during the January transfer window.
Whether he is Sunderland’s best player is up for debate, but it is hard to argue that he isn’t right in the mix, with nine goals for the season meaning he comfortably leads the Black Cats’ scoring charts.
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