In the Premier League, Brian Brobbey scored the winning goal as Sunderland completed a stunning comeback to defeat 10-a-side Bournemouth 3-2.
The Black Cats continue to surprise with their return to the top flight, remaining unbeaten at the Stadium of Light this season.
However, within 15 minutes Sunderland found themselves losing 2-0 and it looked doubtful. There was some luck in Bournemouth’s opening goal, with Evanilsson’s first shot hitting the crossbar. Amin Adli was then waiting to strike home from close range.
The headline could have been about Tyler Adams, too. It came after he scored the second goal for the Cherries from the halfway line on his 50th appearance for the club. He found Robin Rufus off the line and tried his luck, beating him with a great hit that left the goalkeeper in a heap inside the goal.
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Tyler Adams scores a 47-yard wonder goal for Bournemouth at the Stadium of Light.
However, the lead did not last and Sunderland were awarded a penalty just before the half-hour mark. When they were almost back to back, Alex Scott caught Reinild in the calf and the referee pointed to the spot. There was a lengthy VAR review that followed, but the on-field decision remained unchanged.
Enzo Le Fey then launched a counterattack and smashed a super penalty into the net, bringing life back to the Stadium of Light.
And less than a minute after the break, Sunderland equalized. Great play from Bertrand Traore and Granit Xhaka in the build-up saw the Black Cats captain play a wonderfully disguised pass to his team-mate. Traore then scored his first goal for Sunderland with a low finish.
The match progressed at a good pace, with Blobby making a comeback within 10 minutes. The forward nodded in a shot from a corner kick.
Brian Brobbey celebrates the winning goal between Sunderland and Bournemouth
But the drama wasn’t over yet. There was long stoppage time at the end of the second half, and with just minutes left Lewis Cooke was shown a straight red card for elbowing Reinild. The sending off was perhaps not surprising in a game where there were 10 yellow cards, not including a few on the Bournemouth bench and Andoni Iraola himself.
The result moves Sunderland into the top four for the remainder of the weekend, while Bournemouth drop to ninth. Despite a strong start to the season, the Cherries will end November without a win.
Iraora: The referee completely lost control of the match.
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Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola believes referee Tim Robinson lost control of the match during his side’s defeat to Sunderland.
Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola told Sky Sports: “It’s disappointing. We knew it was going to be a difficult game but if we were playing well at 2-0 we would have liked to finish it, but it was clearly too early.”
“The penalty changed the flow of the game…Everyone put pressure on us due to the atmosphere, and as a result we conceded a goal in the first minute of the second half.
“We have to look at ourselves. We conceded goals with two set-pieces and a penalty, and I think the referee completely lost control of the game.
“It was difficult for us to keep our heads up without making big complaints.”
On Sunderland’s penalty: “I think there was a foul on Tavernier five seconds ago. There was a push from behind. It was clearly a foul.”
“If you don’t call a foul for accepting contact, you can’t call a penalty either. It was an important moment in the game, but it wasn’t about the penalty. After that, he lost control of the game.”
“It’s unfortunate… There may be some decisions that are wrong or decisions that I don’t agree with, but you can’t lose control of the game after a decision is made.”
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Tim Sherwood wasn’t too happy that Evanilsson had already scored an ‘incoming’ goal and was ruled offside in Bournemouth v Sunderland
As for the number of yellow cards, including his own, he said: “If you were a Bournemouth supporter, if you were wearing a badge… everyone would have gotten a yellow card or a red card because you have to protect the players.
“Three players (Marcos Sensi, David Brooks and Lewis Cook) are suspended, which will cost us the next game, and we cannot accept that.
“But I’m disappointed for us because we couldn’t defend our set-pieces and I’m disappointed for the referee because he lost absolute control of the game.”
Le Bris: The energy of the Stadium of Light can help change the course of the game
Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris told Sky Sports: “It was a great afternoon for the fans, the players and the club. It shows great character that we were able to start the game 2-0 and win this game.”
On the anxiety of losing 2-0: “To be honest, this league is very demanding, so we made two mistakes and were punished immediately.
“After that, we felt it was possible to create with the ball…Maybe we weren’t efficient at first, but we thought it was possible to do some damage to the defense.
Bertrand Traore scores Sunderland’s equaliser.
“Fans are important, we know that. The energy in this stadium is huge and we can create momentum and change the dynamics of the game, so we tried to marry our game model with this energy.”
About Granit Xhaka: “Granit is very important for us. He gives us knowledge, but he also gives us the desire to change the game, to be proactive, to take risks. Sometimes we can argue tactically, but on the pitch it’s very impressive.”
