Sunderland
1-2
Spurs Tottenham Hotspur

O'Shea (40')

FT(HT: 1-0)

Jimenez Cuellar (48' og.), Lennon (51')

Build-up

Match Analysis: Sunderland 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur

By Joe Fish, Reporter | 29 December 2012

Sports Mole analyses the Premier League clash between Sunderland and Spurs at the Stadium of Light, where the visitors came from behind to claim victory.

Tottenham Hotspur produced a second-half comeback to see off Sunderland at the Stadium of Light this afternoon.

After John O'Shea had given the hosts the lead, a Carlos Cuellar own goal and a tidy Aaron Lennon finish saw Spurs turn the game around.

Below, Sports Mole analyses whether the result was reflective of the action on Wearside.

Match statistics

Spurs:
Shots: 18
On target: 14
Possession: 56%
Corners: 8
Fouls: 15

Sunderland:
Shots: 9
On target: 6
Possession: 44%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 9

Was the result fair?

Sunderland may have taken the lead, but that was a false half-time scoreline. Spurs dominated much of the action and put in another pleasing away display. Anything other than maximum points for the Lillywhites would have been an injustice.

Tottenham's performance

Controlled large spells of the game and possessed attacking threats on both flanks. Unlike in several of their other performances this season, they converted possession into clear-cut chances and could have won by a bigger margin had Emmanuel Adebayor been more clinical.

Sunderland's performance

Apart from a six-minute spell during which Spurs scored both of their goals, the Black Cats were solid at the back which is commendable considering all of Martin O'Neill's defensive injury problems. James McClean had a lively opening half-hour, but Sunderland's other flair players did not influence the game enough. Set pieces presented their best goalscoring opportunities as they rarely threatened the visitors' net from open play.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Aaron Lennon: With all of the pre-match attention on Gareth Bale, Tottenham's other winger went under the Sunderland radar and caused makeshift left-back Matthew Kilgallon plenty of problems. He used all of his trickery and pace to torment the home defence and often had the final ball to go with it. Honourable mentions to Kyle Naughton and Simon Mignolet, who made several superb saves to keep Sunderland in the contest.

Biggest gaffe

Martin Atkinson's decision to book Bale for diving was a really bad call. Craig Gardner made clear contact with the flying Welshman, who should have been awarded a penalty when he went to ground. It appeared to be a case of cautioning Bale on his reputation for apparent simulation in recent weeks.

Referee's performance

Apart from the incident mentioned above, Atkinson did not have many significant calls to make. There were a few probable fouls not given, but it was his decision to yellow card Bale and turn down Spurs's corresponding spot-kick appeals which will reflect badly in the post-match reports.

What next?

Spurs: A home match against struggling Reading during which Andre Villas-Boas may choose to rest some of his key players.

Sunderland: An away trip to Liverpool on Wednesday before an FA Cup third round match at Championship Bolton Wanderers.