Interim manager Mike Dodds hailed the impact of Jobe Bellingham as a centre-forward after Sunderland beat Cardiff 2-0 to claim their first win since February 10.
Bellingham, the 18-year-old younger brother of England and Real Madrid midfielder Jude, won an early penalty before scoring his seventh goal of the season in all-round mature performance.
“We should be excited about his performance, something we can build on moving forward,” said Dodds, who revealed he has held conversations with Bellingham about his best position after tending to play him in midfield.
“He’s scored a goal and done well in the the game. He’s a coach’s dream, if I said go and play in goal he would just crack on with it.
“What he has got, which many number nines don’t have in this league, is unbelievable quality with his feet – a centre-midfielder playing up front.
“He gave us a platform to play off but you’ve got to remember he’s a second-year scholar playing in the Championship.
“He’s 18 and I know he carries the weight of his brother, which I think sometimes is unfair.
“But if you put that to one side, you’ve just seen a second-year scholar who has been exceptional and should be playing youth-team football.”
Dodds succeeded the sacked Michael Beale on February 19 and Sunderland had lost six and drawn one of their previous seven games to slide down the Sky Bet Championship table.
He said: “I think it was a real professional performance and I’ve tried to stay really balanced in this seat looking at performances.
“I am more happy for the group and the fans because the result makes everything feel a little bit lighter but I’m quite balanced.
“The (first) goal was a huge psychological factor in us just relaxing, after that we were excellent and cut through them really well.”
A second successive defeat – Cardiff had lost 2-0 to Welsh rivals Swansea before the international break – ended the Bluebirds’ slim play-off hopes.
Erol Bulut’s one-year contract expires at the end of the season and the Bluebirds manager conceded that uncertainty over his future could be impacting on performances.
Bulut said: “It can be (affecting players). I don’t have any problems. I respect it from the board if they are not coming with a new offer.
“I’m focusing on my job until the end of the season. Until now we haven’t had any communication about that, so let’s see.”
On a poor performance, Bulut added: “During the international break, the players trained really well so I was expecting a much better game.
“To see that performance, it hurts. I have to be honest, from the 39 games we’ve played this season, this was one of the worst.”
Postecoglou: Spurs have a confidence problem to overcome
Ange Postecoglou says that Tottenham need to "overcome" their low confidence after suffering a 4-2 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
Spurs slipped to their fourth consecutive Premier League defeat, being left to bemoan their slow start as they found themselves 4-0 down by the hour mark thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah, Andrew Robertson, Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott.
Richarlison came off the bench to salvage some pride for Spurs, scoring one before setting up Son Heung-min for a goal on his 300th Premier League appearance.
Spurs had the opportunity to cut the gap to the top four after Aston Villa’s defeat to Brighton, but they remain seven points off a Champions League spot.
Postecoglou’s side still have a game in hand over the Villans, though he was sure that Spurs would be able to put their recent poor run behind them.
Asked if Spurs had a confidence problem, Postecoglou told Sky Sports: "Maybe in the front third there is.
"It probably is a bit of a lack of confidence, but again, that's something the guys have to work through.
"You have to find a way to overcome that because, ultimately, if you don't put pressure on the opposition in the front third after you've worked your way up there, they're going to get comfortable with their position."
Spurs have won just one of their last nine Premier League away games, failing to win any of the last five.
Despite that run extending at Anfield, Postecoglou highlighted what he thought was an improvement on their recent performances.
He continued: "Obviously a hugely disappointing outcome for us but at least we were more like ourselves today in terms of our football.
"Our last two away games at Newcastle and Chelsea, apart from the results which weren't great either, we just didn't try and play our football.
"I thought today, even in the first half, some of our football, our pressing was back to where it should be."
Roma 1-1 Juventus: Juve miss chance to close gap to second after draw with Roma
Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw at Roma on Sunday, missing the chance to close in on Milan in second place in Serie A.
Roma took the lead after 15 minutes when Romelu Lukaku found himself in the perfect position to tap in the rebound from a Bryan Cristante shot.
Bremer levelled with a header for Juventus just after the half-hour mark when Federico Chiesa picked him out inside the box from a corner.
Both sides had chances to find a winner in the final minutes, with Roma keeper Mile Svilar making a fingertip save to push Manuel Locatelli's volley over the bar.
Third-placed Juventus have 66 points, five fewer than Milan, who drew 3-3 with Genoa earlier on Sunday. Roma are fifth with 60 points.
Data Debrief: Leading from the back
Since scoring his first Serie A goal in the 2019-20 season, Bremer is the defender with the most headed goals in the Big-5 European leagues, netting 13 in total. Each of his last seven goals have been headers.
His goal was enough to earn Juventus a point today, but it means that they have drawn each of their last four in the competition - a first since February-March 2012 under Antonio Conte.
Chelsea 8-0 Bristol City: Blues rout hands Hayes perfect home send off
Guro Reiten starred as Chelsea thrashed already-relegated Bristol City 8-0 to keep their title hopes alive in the Women's Super League on Sunday.
The Norwegian scored four goals, netting the opener from the penalty spot to get Emma Hayes' last home game in charge off to the best start.
She scored the other three in the second half in just over 20 minutes, while teeing up Agnes Beever-Jones for the seventh goal with just two minutes left.
Beever-Jones got two, with Sjoeke Nusken and Niamh Charles also adding to the scoreline to eradicate the goal-difference advantage that Manchester City, who lost to Arsenal earlier on Sunday, had over them.
Chelsea move to within three points of the Citizens, with a game in hand over them, remaining in the fight to lift their fifth-consecutive league title.
Data Debrief:
Chelsea have scored eight goals in a game for the first time since December 2022 against Leicester City, a match they also won 8-0.
The Blues have scored in their last six games in the WSL, though it does not come close to their longest run of games with a goal in the competition - a run of 20 from April 2023 to February 2024.
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