The Black Cats beat Everton 2-0 at Goodison Park
Sunderland have climbed out of the Premier League relegation zone after picking up a vital 2-0 win away at Goodison Park this lunch-time.
The Black Cats went into the game knowing wins were vital to their hopes of surviving, and thanks to Danny Graham and Jermain Defoe, Dick Advocaat‘s men came away with three superb points.
The 2-0 victory climbs Sunderland from 18th to 14th, two points ahead of the drop zone.
Sunderland performed the great escape last season after beating Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United, and it looks like Advocaat could be guiding the club to yet another narrow escape.
Burnley, Hull, Newcastle United, Leicester City and Aston Villa all kick off at 3pm today and will all know how Sunderland have done before their games.
Graham gave the visitors the lead after 53-minutes, and Defoe settled the game with five minutes left.
The goal was Graham’s first goal in the Premier League since December 2013, but it’s proven to be vital for Sunderland, who will now face Leicester City, Arsenal and Chelsea in their remaining three games.
After the game, the Sunderland camp gave their reaction to the vital three points.
Match Reaction
Sunderland goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon: “We win together, we lose together. That is the most important thing. We did our job and for the next game is the most important thing. We showed our energy, we looked like a proper team.”
Sunderland striker Danny Graham: “It has been a long time, a frustrating couple of years at the football club. We have to see how results go, we have put the pressure on everyone else. We need top focus on next week’s game. The momentum is there and we need to build on it.”
Sunderland boss Dick Advocaat to BBC Sport: “It was good we won, it was not our best game but it was effective. It could be very important.
“It was not our best performance but we can improve. It is all about results. I changed something at half time because I was not happy about some performances.
“Everton were the better side but it is all about winning, give 100 percent and show the fans what they want and that is what we did.
“Last three games we have seven points, we are desperate to get three points. They gave everything, they all want to stay up and the fans were great. They give the players something extra.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles
