Sunderland head into the World Cup break on the back of a hard-fought win against Birmingham at St Andrew's. Ellis Simms gave the Black Cats the lead inside the opening half-hour, before on-loan Manchester United man Amad scored a stunning second just after half-time.
But the Blues pulled a goal back through substitute Lukas Jutkiewicz with just over ten minutes remaining, and that meant Sunderland had to see out a spell of heavy pressure in the final stages. It was edge-of-your-seat stuff at times, but they held on to earn all three points.
That meant that Tony Mowbray's side moved up to 12th in the Championship, albeit ahead of this weekend's full fixture programme.
READ MORE: Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray delivers update on Ross Stewart's fitness
Here's how our Sunderland AFC writer James Hunter rated the players.
Anthony Patterson 8
Made two brilliant saves, but they were just the best of many
Trai Hume 7
A solid performance at right-back
Bailey Wright 6
Did OK, but was at fault for the Birmingham goal.
Danny Batth 8
Won everything in the air
Niall Huggins 6
His first start since September 2021 so it was no surprise he looked rusty, but did OK
Corry Evans 8
A tower of strength in midfield
Dan Neil 8
Never stopped running, and his throughball for Amad's goal was fabulous
Amad 9
Scored a stunning goal, and also provided the assist for Simms' opener. Brilliant, until forced off through injury
Alex Pritchard 7
Worked hard from first minute to last
Jack Clarke 7
Always offered a threat on the left flank
Ellis Simms 7
Scored his first goal since August, and looked more like his old self
Subs
Patrick Roberts 6
For Amad 66mins. Helped Sunderland run down the clock late on
Elliot Embleton N/A
For Simms 85mins.
Jay Matete N/A
For Pritchard 85mins.
Not used: Bass, Ba, Bennette, Johnson
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