Sunderland Vs Fulham: Raúl Jiménez double and Alex Iwobi finish secure 3-1 win
In the sunderland vs fulham contest Fulham beat Sunderland 3-1 as Raúl Jiménez scored twice and Alex Iwobi added a late third, ending Fulham’s three-match Premier League losing run and moving the visitors above Sunderland to 10th in the table. Enzo Le Fée’s powerful penalty briefly gave the hosts hope but Fulham completed the victory on a counter-attack.
Sunderland Vs Fulham: Jiménez’s header and penalty
Raúl Jiménez put Fulham ahead midway through the first half when he peeled off his marker to head in Alex Iwobi’s 54th-minute corner. Seven minutes later the referee, Craig Pawson, was sent to the pitchside monitor and adjudged Brian Brobbey to have pulled on Calvin Bassey’s shirt in the area, awarding Fulham a penalty. Jiménez converted from the spot, sending Sunderland goalkeeper Robin Roefs the wrong way – the striker’s 13th successful penalty out of 13 in the Premier League.
The Mexico striker’s double was a second-half header and a penalty; the 34-year-old will turn 35 in May, and the brace took his tally to 11 goals in 36 appearances for club and country this season. He had last scored in a 3-2 defeat against Manchester United on 1 February. Jiménez had been booked in the first half for catching Dan Ballard with a flailing arm and almost received a second yellow for a similar challenge on Omar Alderete a few minutes later. It is approaching six years since his career was placed in serious jeopardy by a skull fracture, yet he showed few signs of lasting decline in this match.
Penalties, misses and Iwobi’s decisive chip
Late swings defined the game. Sunderland pulled one back in the 76th minute when Dan Ballard drove into the area and was bundled to the floor by Ryan Sessegnon, winning a penalty that Enzo Le Fée placed in the top corner. The hosts’ hope lasted only until the counter-attack with five minutes remaining: Harry Wilson broke clear and slipped in Alex Iwobi, who dinked a calm finish over Roefs for his first goal since December.
The sunderland vs fulham match also featured clearcut chances missed by Romaine Mundle and Nilson Angulo, moments the home side will regret as they surrendered control in the closing stages. Fulham’s victory completed a league double over Sunderland for the first time since the 2002-03 campaign and was the club’s first league win since beating Brighton 2-1 on 24 January; it was also Fulham’s first away top-flight win this year.
Managers, tactics and a team in need of solutions
Marco Silva’s side ended a run of three successive Premier League defeats with the win. For Sunderland, Régis Le Bris admitted the day was difficult: “It’s a tough day, ” he said, adding: “We couldn’t find the right way to express our quality. We got too sloppy to impose our ideas. It was a tight game but we weren’t good enough. We have to find solutions rather than searching for excuses. We have to show our character. ”
Le Bris had fielded a very attacking starting XI in an attempt to address a scoring drought from open play; his side have won only two of their past 11 league games since promotion. Part of the problem, he suggested, was the January signings: Jocelin and Nilson Angulo were used as touchline-hugging wingers. Angulo is an Ecuador international signed from Anderlecht, while Jocelin, an Ivorian, arrived from Maccabi Netanya after failing to make a single first-team appearance there and spending most of his two years on loan in Israel’s second tier.
Online abuse draws club condemnations
The fixture weekend was overshadowed off the pitch by fresh episodes of online racist abuse. Wolves and Sunderland issued statements condemning vile online racist abuse directed at players. After a match against Crystal Palace, Wolves condemned racist posts aimed at their Nigerian striker Tolu Arokodare following his penalty miss and republished specific posts on the club website that included references to Arokodare as a monkey.
Wolves said: "Wolves are disgusted by numerous instances of racist abuse, from multiple perpetrators. There is no place for racism – in football, online, or anywhere in society. We condemn this abhorrent and unlawful behaviour in the strongest possible terms. Tolu has our full and unwavering support. No player should be subjected to such hatred simply for doing their job. We stand firmly alongside him, and alongside all footballers who are forced to endure this abuse from anonymous accounts acting with apparent impunity. " The club added that it has reported the posts to the relevant platforms. Arokodare later posted: “It’s still unbelievable to me that we’re playing in a time where people have so much freedom to communicate such racism without any consequences. ”
Sunderland said they were working with authorities to identify those responsible for “vile online racist abuse” directed at Romaine Mundle, adding: "These individuals do not represent Sunderland AFC, our values, or our community - and they are not welcome on Wearside. " Anti-racism group Kick It Out described it as "an appalling weekend" of abuse and posted: "Action must follow. Players cannot be expected to tolerate this behaviour, and nor should anyone else. "
