Wilson Isidor Off Bench To Seal Dramatic Sunderland Comeback Over Brentford

It is nary concealed that Régis Le Bris hopes to motion different striker earlier nan transportation model euphony stops connected Monday nighttime but maybe, conscionable maybe, Wilson Isidor gave Sunderland’s head stoppage clip region for thought.

Isidor stepped disconnected nan chair to people his 2nd extremity successful 3 Premier League appearances arsenic Le Bris’s squad made it 2 wins from three. With this grade of protect organisation allied to Enzo Le Fée’s imaginative flair they could yet beryllium much than tin of making a successful adjustment to their caller apical tier habitat.

Like Le Bris, Brentford’s head Keith Andrews is intelligibly nary mug erstwhile it comes to mounting up a team, he conscionable lacked a striker to capable nan immense spread vacated by nan absent Yoane Wissa.

Andrews does astatine slightest person Dango Ouattara though. Le Bris was astir apt not excessively amazed erstwhile Ouattara controlled a beautiful first-half reverse walk from Nathan Collins earlier embarking connected a tally that would expanse him betwixt nan location cardinal protect business of Nordi Mukiele and Omar Alderete. Indeed Sunderland’s head looked alternatively resigned erstwhile Brentford’s nine grounds £42.5m summertime signing from Bournemouth proceeded to rotation a wonderfully audacious changeable beyond a deceived Robin Roefs.

Le Bris had seen it each before; aft each he was nan coach who spent countless hours honing Ouattara’s crippled astatine Lorient. All that activity yet helped gain nan Burkina Faso winger a £20m transportation to Bournemouth 2 years agone and now he was relishing a chance to punctual his aged mentor conscionable really bully he is.

No matter that, successful offering conclusive impervious that Ouattara had been fractionally offside, VAR came to Sunderland’s rescue, Le Bris’s players knew their promising commencement had been virtually inches distant from being wiped out.

In showing disconnected immoderate awesome passing and movement, not to mention fluid positional interchanging, nan location broadside often looked assured but, contempt immoderate bully touches from Le Fée – different postgraduate of nan French shot mill different known arsenic Lorient – they created comparatively small of menace.

Enzo Le Fée converts from nan punishment spot. Photograph: Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC/Getty Images

That was partially down to Jordan Henderson’s beingness astatine nan guidelines of Brentford’s midfield. On his return to nan nine wherever he began his profession and was erstwhile very overmuch nan section hero, Henderson played well, slowing things down erstwhile basal and contributing nan overseas high-calibre done pass.

Le Bris must person been suitably relieved that different of his erstwhile Lorient proteges was not astir to link pinch those deliveries. Andrews had near Wissa down successful London arsenic nan DR Congo striker continued to push for a longed-for move to Newcastle.

Without Wissa this progressively became a lawsuit of 2 evidently smartly drilled sides cancelling each different out. If that was down mostly to nan tactical choreography of Le Bris and Andrews it besides had rather a spot to do pinch nan tempo-controlling beingness of Henderson and Granit Xhaka.

Sunderland explored nan anticipation of bringing Henderson backmost to nan Stadium of Light from Ajax this summertime but ended up recruiting Xhaka from Bayer Leverkusen to execute a akin activity role.

Yet arsenic overmuch arsenic nan erstwhile Arsenal midfielder played a cardinal portion successful containing Brentford, Andrews’s squad would person taken nan lead had Sunderland’s awesome goalkeeper, Robin Roefs not saved Kevin Schade’s 2nd half punishment awarded aft Reinildo hauled Collins down pinch nan shot immoderate region away.

Schade looked mortified aft aiming his footwear acold excessively adjacent to nan Roefs and relieved erstwhile Habib Diarra proved unequal to a highly inviting Le Fee transverse that begged to beryllium volleyed past Caioimhín Kelleher.

A reminder that chances request to beryllium taken was swiftly issued by Brentford. When Igor Thiago stretched to meet Frank Onyeka’s cross, moreover Roefs had nary reply to nan headed decorativeness and Sunderland were behind.

Onyeka had swiftly made his people aft replacing Henderson, who departed to a opinionated ovation from his erstwhile public.

An moreover louder cheer greeted nan punishment Le Fée directed cleanly into nan bottommost right-hand corner, leaving Kelleher nary chance of a prevention aft Rico Henry had pulled Diarra down.

All that remained was for Xhaka to whip successful a 96th-minute transverse that Isidor delighted successful polishing disconnected pinch a header Kelleher touched but could not hold.