Sunderland 1 Arsenal 0

Nov 22 2009 by James Hunter, Sunday Sun

The visitors were in control of the early stages and were playing their trademark neat football, leaving Sunderland working overtime to close them down.

In the 13th minute Fabregas hit a rising right-footed shot from 25 yards which flew just over the bar.

Gradually, Sunderland began to come into the game and just after the quarter-hour their first real chance came when Andy Reid’s left-wing cross skimmed off the head of a defender and fell to the unmarked Malbranque beyond the far post and he controlled but steered his shot just wide of the top right-hand corner.

Three minutes later Malbranque found himself with a similar chance when another Reid cross ended up at his feet at the far post but this time he elected to hit it first time and blazed well over the bar when he had the chance to bring it under control and pick his spot.

Arsenal were inches away from breaking the deadlock on 32 minutes when Alex Song and Eduardo played a quick one-two on the edge of the box.

Song played it back to the Brazil-born Croatia international inside the box and he lifted the ball over Fülöp but it went just wide of the left-hand post, Song slid in but just could not apply the finishing touch.

Aaron Ramsey tried his luck on 38 minutes with a volley from the edge of the box, down into the greasy turf but it went straight at the keeper who made an easy save on his line.

Sunderland stepped up their workrate in the second half and made life tougher for Arsenal, who struggled to break the Black Cats down.

Just before the hour, Reid sent a 35-yard free-kick just past the right-hand post, although goalkeeper Manuel Almunia had it covered.

But the decisive moment came on 71 minutes, when Reid won a corner kick on the left flank.

He took the set-piece himself and Bent got in front of his marker to get his head to it but only made slight contact, the ball carried on and hit sub Campbell on the knees, bounced back into Bent’s path and he tucked it away.

Sunderland almost added a second in the 90th minute when another sub, Bolo Zenden, sent in a low cross from the left and Kieran Richardson slid in to meet it at the near post but his marker just did enough to get a touch on the ball and prevent it crossing the line with Almunia beaten.

With the clock ticking down, Arsenal felt they were denied an injury-time penalty when Carlos Vela took a tumble inside the box under a challenge from Campbell but referee Alan Wiley was unimpressed.

Sunderland hung on to win and, while they stay eighth in the table, they closed the gap between themselves and a Champions League place to just two points.