SUNDERLAND (4-1-4-1):
7 Mannone: Had a rush of blood when he missed an attempted header but made an excellent save from Sanchez in either half
7 Yedlin: Got himself into some superb positions on the overlap, but his end delivery was occasionally lacking
8 Kaboul: Another excellent display from arguably the most improved player in the Sunderland team – dominant in the air
8 KONE: Looks an even better signing with every week that passes – strong, aggressive and a superb reader of the game
7 Van Aanholt: Continues to offer a potent threat with his overlapping runs and couldn’t have come much closer as he struck the post
7 Kirchhoff: Just about the best player on the pitch in the first half, but was tiring long before he was eventually taken off
6 Borini: His energy and work rate has added another string to Sunderland’s attacking bow, but he struggled to break free of the Arsenal defence
8 Cattermole: Led by example at the heart of midfield, and was constantly encouraging and cajoling his team-mates
6 M’Vila: Did some things very well and forced a fine second-half save from Cech, but gave the ball away cheaply on a number of occasions
7 Khazri: Indistinguishable from the player who performed so poorly at Norwich and almost beat Cech in the second half
7 Defoe: Forced Cech into an excellent save with a second-half snapshot and never stopped battling away despite sometimes lacking support
Subs:
Watmore (for Borini, 74)
Larsson (for Kirchhoff, 77)
(not used): Pickford (gk), Jones, O’Shea, Rodwell, N’Doye.
ARSENAL (4-2-3-1):
Cech 8; Bellerin 6, Mertesacker 7, Koscielny 7, Monreal 6; Elneny 7, Ramsey 5; IWOBI 8 (Walcott 71), Ozil 6 (Wilshere 84), Sanchez 7; Giroud 5 (Welbeck 71).
Subs (not used): Ospina (gk), Gabriel, Coquelin, Campbell.
Man Of The Match: LAMINE KONE – The centre-half has been a key factor in Sunderland keeping successive clean sheets and looks one of the bargains of the season at £5m.
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