How did the players fare in Sunderland’s goalless draw with Leeds United?


LEEDS (4-2-3-1):

Meslier 6; Gray 7 (Roberts 82), RODON 7, Ampadu 7, Firpo 6; Gruev 6, Kamara 5 (Gnonto 71); James 6 (Piroe 82), Rutter 6, Summerville 7; Bamford 5 (Joseph 82).

Subs (not used): Darlow (gk), Cresswell, Cooper, Anthony, Byram.


SUNDERLAND (5-4-1):

7 Patterson: Made a couple of important punches, but actually had surprisingly little to do in terms of making saves

8 Pembele: Did superbly on his first Sunderland start, largely getting the better of the dangerous Summerville before he was withdrawn midway through the second half

7 Hume: Looked perfectly at home as part of three centre-halves, with his tackling ability coming to the fore

8 BALLARD: Defended excellently throughout, winning crucial tackles and headers and maintaining his composure after picking up an early booking

8 O’Nien: Threw himself into tackles and blocks, with his wholehearted commitment typifying Sunderland’s overall display

7 Styles: Performed impressively as a left wing-back, keeping the dangerous James quiet all night

7 Rigg: You have to constantly remind yourself that the midfielder is just 16 – an ultra-professional performance during his 59 minutes on the field

8 Neil: Was the tiger at the heart of the Sunderland midfield – won countless tackles and drove forward when possible

7 Ekwah: Much more like it from the midfielder – held his position when he had to and made some crunching challenges

7 Clarke: Caused the occasional problem down the left, especially in the first half when he tested Meslier with a couple of long-range shots

6 Bellingham: Had a fairly thankless task for much of the evening, but gave his all despite largely having to feed on scraps


Subs:

6 Roberts (for Rigg, 59): Forced Meslier into a sprawling save with a free-kick from the corner of the box

7 Alese (for Pembele, 68): Ensured Sunderland’s defensive levels did not drop after he was brought onto the field

Hemir (for Bellingham, 90)

(not used): Bishop (gk), Hjelde, Ba, Mundle, Dack, Aouchiche.


Man Of The Match: DAN BALLARD – The Sunderland centre-half made a succession of perfectly-timed challenges to keep the Leeds defence at bay.