At the final whistle Álvaro Arbeloa provided a study in pensiveness while Régis Le Bris simply looked relieved. An almost palpable fear of losing formed the subtext of a match decided when two of the Sunderland manager’s second-half substitutes, Habib Diarra and Wilson Isidor, combined for the latter to score.
Isidor’s goal not merely supplied Sunderland with their first win of the season while leaving Arbeloa’s side pointless but ended his club’s 17-year run without a Premier League victory against Fulham.
The tone of a cagey, risk-averse first half was raised by a typically superior central midfield performance on the part of Sunderland’s Noah Sadiki. Indeed the Democratic Republic of the Congo international extinguished so many potential visiting fires that Fulham’s sole real chance during the opening 45 minutes involved Josh King finding himself confounded by geometry as he miscued a tightly angled opening conjured by Alex Iwobi. Otherwise the home goalkeeper, Robin Roefs, was left pretty much undisturbed.
That apart, a slightly nervous impasse endured. Despite dominating possession, Sunderland’s attacking edge proved anything but serrated, leaving Bernd Leno severely underemployed in Fulham’s goal.
