Source: SKY_Sports
Baggies punish Black Cats
A solid team performance from West Brom has given the club renewed hope of staying up after a 3-0 win over Sunderland at the Hawthorns.[LNB] The Baggies still remain six points off safety but will no doubt fight to the end of the season after their sublime attacking display dragged Sunderland deeper into relegation trouble.[LNB]The home side took the lead on 40 minutes thanks to Jonas Olsson directed his volley into the bottom corner after being left unmarked from a Jonathan Greening corner.[LNB]A lacklustre second half display from Sunderland allowed West Brom to enjoy themselves with attractive football and they were deservedly two goals up on 58 minutes through Chris Brunt.[LNB]The in-form winger got his toe on the end of Marc-Antoine Fortune's pull back to double their advantage. Sunderland's misery was complete when Argentine Juan Carlos Menseguez completed the scoring with a neat touch and finish on 88 minutes.[LNB]Sunderland will see the result as a missed opportunity to secure their safety against the Premier League's basement club and now face a relegation battle which will surely go down to the wire.[LNB]Clean SheetAlbion also kept only their second clean sheet since their last victory - a 3-0 triumph over Middlesbrough in mid-January - as the Sunderland forward duo of Kenwyne Jones and Djibril Cisse were kept under control.[LNB]The home side still have a mountain to climb if they are to repeat their Great Escape heroics of four years ago during the Bryan Robson era.[LNB]But at least they are showing signs of not going down without a fight and they were well worth the three points.[LNB]Olsson was solid as a rock at the back, youngster Graham Dorrans impressed in midfield and Brunt was a constant threat.[LNB]Only midfielder Kieran Richardson - a member of that Albion side which defied the odds in 2005 - threatened to deny Albion a rare victory.[LNB]Sunderland midfielder Andy Reid found the target with a dipping 20 yard effort but it did not trouble West Brom goalkeeper Scott Carson.[LNB]A low centre from Albion's on-loan Arsenal striker Jay Simpson took a deflection and fell invitingly to Robert Koren 15 yards out but his left-footed shot was blocked by Teemu Tainio.[LNB]Sunderland responded and a quick break by Cisse found them with a three versus two advantage but Abdoulaye Meite rescued the situation with a solid tackle on the Black Cats leading scorer.[LNB]It was 26 minutes before Marton Fulop, who had replaced the injured Craig Gordon, was extended for the first time, holding onto a low left-footed shot from Brunt which took a slight deflection.[LNB]Carson could only palm a cross from Reid into the path of Edwards but he appeared to be taken by surprise and his header looped harmlessly over the bar.[LNB]Richardson brought a fine full-length save out of Carson with a swerving 30 yard drive which was turned around the post.[LNB]Deadlock BrokenThen after 40 minutes central defender Olsson broke the deadlock by putting Albion in front with his third goal of the campaign.[LNB]Skipper Jonathan Greening's inswinging corner flicked off the head of Abdoulaye Meite to Olsson at the far the post and his low left-footed half volley flew past Fulop.[LNB]Mowbray made a double half-time substitution with Youssouf Mulumbu and Shelton Martis replacing Simpson and Meite respectively.[LNB]The Black Cats made their first change after 52 minutes with Reid making way for Dean Whitehead and shortly afterwards Steed Malbranque came on for Edwards.[LNB]Fulop had to come racing out of his area to deny Brunt after he had attempted to run onto a fine pass from Koren in a rare moment of excitement.[LNB]But after 58 minutes Brunt scored his fourth goal in the last three games to double the Baggies lead.[LNB]Fortune showed his power to shrug off the challenge of Anton Ferdinand and his low cross from the by-line was turned home at close range by the former Sheffield Wednesday man.[LNB]The impressive Dorrans limped out of the action after 63 minutes as Menseguez became the third Albion substitute.[LNB]Cisse then missed a golden chance to reduce the arrears when he deflected a shot from Tainio over the bar from close range.[LNB]With a minute left, Brunt turned creator as his pass was turned home by Menseguez.[LNB]
