Sunderland gave their survival hopes a massive boost this afternoon as they moved out of the relegation zone with a 2-0 victory over Everton at Goodison Park.
Having held on for much of the first half, the visitors broke the deadlock eight minutes after the restart when a Jordi Gomez strike deflected off Danny Graham and in.
Everton pushed for an equaliser and hit the post through James McCarthy, but fortune favoured the Black Cats again as Jermain Defoe sealed the points with another deflected goal five minutes from time.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at whether Sunderland were worthy winners on Merseyside.
Match statistics
EVERTON
Shots: 22
On target: 4
Possession: 73%
Corners: 15
Fouls: 10
SUNDERLAND
Shots: 10
On target: 3
Possession: 27%
Corners: 1
Fouls: 9
Was the result fair?
Roberto Martinez, Dick Advocaat and just about everyone else will be scratching their heads wondering how Sunderland came away with a 2-0 victory today. This was one of the most fortuitous results you will ever see, with Sunderland getting two incredibly lucky goals and surviving a clear penalty shout in addition to Everton hitting the post. You often need luck on your side when fighting against relegation, and the Black Cats would have used up their whole season's worth today.
The statistics demonstrate the level of Everton's dominance for long periods of this game. Throughout the first half it was evident that Advocaat would have been happy to come away with a goalless draw, with his side showing little attacking intent despite starting with three strikers. Everton controlled the ball and had a number of clear chances, but the visitors had Costel Pantilimon to thank for keeping them in the match with three good saves.
Sunderland did improve in the second half following a change of tactics from Advocaat, but Everton were still largely in control of proceedings. They were asking the majority of the questions going forward, and only some stubborn defending and the woodwork kept the hosts at bay. Sunderland were no doubt in greater need of the points today, but Everton deserved a share of the spoils at the very least from this match.
Everton's performance
Boos rang around Goodison Park at the final whistle today following a second consecutive defeat to relegation candidates, but that does not tell the full story. Everton actually played fairly well this afternoon, but nothing went their way. The Toffees were not quite at their best, and there was a sense that they may have moved up a gear had more been riding on the match, but there were a number of spells where they played some really slick football to cut Sunderland open.
They probably should have been home and dry by half time, with Romelu Lukaku squandering two one-on-ones in the first half and Leon Osman also missing a glorious opportunity. They found Pantilimon in good form in the opening 45 minutes, however, while in the second half there always seemed to be a Sunderland body in the way. Everton got into a number of really good attacking positions, but they simply could not put the ball in the back of the net.
Their plight was not helped by only four of their 22 shots being on target, but the reason they drew a blank today was more down to brave defending than poor finishing - in the second half at least. To have had 73% possession and lost 2-0 is not something you see often, particularly for a side who had been unbeaten at home in 2015 before today. However, they can look back on this one as something of an anomaly having been on the wrong end of two scrappy goals and a rejected penalty call, in addition to hitting the post.
Sunderland's performance
The headline writers will have a field day with Black Cats and luck after this one. Sunderland went into the match knowing that they needed a draw at the very least due to their tricky final two fixtures, and throughout the first half it looked like they may settle for that. They saw very little of the ball and, far from playing with three up front, the likes of Defoe and Connor Wickham were playing more as full-backs, a role the former in particular struggled with.
Advocaat changed things at the break, and his side began to show more in the Everton half as a result. They were still on the back foot for long periods, however, and Graham's opener came very much against the run of play. The striker knew nothing about it as the ball deflected off his leg while he was trying to get out of the way, but Sunderland suddenly had a lead to defend. Rather than retreating further into their shell, though, the visitors began pushing for a second in the immediate aftermath of the goal.
Everton soon regained control, but everything went for the Black Cats today. Seamus Coleman should have had a penalty against Defoe and McCarthy hit the post with a really good effort before Defoe got his side's second, again against the run of play and again via a fortunate deflection. In their position, they will not care how the goals come, however, and they now have back-to-back wins for the first time this season to pile the pressure on those around them. One thing is for sure after this performance - they are up for the fight.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Costel Pantilimon: A number of Sunderland players could lay claim to this, with Wes Brown and Lee Cattermole chief among them for their second-half displays. However, Pantilimon was the standout player in the first half and, without him in such good form, the visitors could have been dead and buried at the break. The big keeper made two fine stops to smother Lukaku and also denied Osman from a really good position.
Biggest gaffe
Despite the hectic nature of Sunderland's goals, there were not many telling mistakes from either set of players today. The biggest gaffe of the match came from the officials, who refused to award a penalty to Coleman when the full-back was tripped by Defoe at the back post. In fairness to the referee, it took a few replays to be sure Coleman was caught, but it certainly should have been a spot kick.
Referee performance
Lee Probert got that big decision wrong, while there was also a question of handball against Defoe for the second goal. Both were very hard to spot, and the latter would have been harsh, but had Probert correctly awarded a penalty to Everton then things could have been very different.
What next?
Everton: Next up for the Toffees is a trip to Upton Park to face West Ham United next weekend before their final-day meeting with Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison.
Sunderland: Sunderland, meanwhile, have a huge six-pointer against Leicester City at the Stadium of Light next Saturday, before finishing the season with trips to Arsenal and Chelsea respectively.
Barney Corkhill
