Bolton Wanderers 6 Sunderland 0: Story of the day as Lee Johnson's side are thrashed at the University of Bolton Stadium
and live on Freeview channel 276
The Black Cats went in 2-0 down at half-time after goals from Dion Charles and Dapo Afolayan.
Charles then scored his second of the match shortly after the break, before Kieran Lee added a fourth before the hour mark.
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Hide AdA Danny Batth own goal and Declan John strike then made it a total embarrassment for Lee Johnson’s side.
Here’s how the game played out at the University of Bolton Stadium:
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RECAP: Bolton 6 (Charles, 20, 50) (Afolayan, 42) (Lee, 59) (John, 88) Sunderland 0
Key Events
- Sunderland XI: Hoffmann, Winchester, Batth, Doyle, Cirkin (Clarke, 53), Evans, Neil (Pritchard, 53), Gooch, Embleton, Dajaku (Roberts, 66), Stewart
- Subs: Patterson, Flanagan, Hume, Roberts, Clarke, Pritchard, O’Brien
- Bolton XI: Trafford, Jones, Santon, Johnston, Fossey, Williams, Morley, John, Lee (Sadlier, 72), Charles (Bakayoko, 72), Afolayan (Bödvarsson, 72)
- Subs: Dixon, Bodvarsson, Bakayoko, Aimson, Sadlier, Thomason, Baptiste
Ian Evatt on facing Sunderland
Bolton boss Ian Evatt was very complimentary when talking about Sunderland ahead of today’s match.
“If you look at both teams we beat, they’re two excellent wins, especially away from home – getting that monkey off our back – and beating Ipswich who are in red-hot form,” he said.
“Sunderland, for me, are the best footballing team in the league. I think it will be a good challenge.
“I think it’s going to be a really good game. Of the teams at the top, they’re the team I like the most – the way the play. I’m looking forward to a technical and tactical battle.
“We have to make sure we’re at the top of our game because they’re a very good team.”
The inside track on Bolton
Bolton may be 18th in the table but have recorded back-to-back wins over Ipswich and Shrewsbury.
To find out more we caught up with Wanderers reporter we caught up with Bolton reporter Marc Iles from The Bolton News to get the inside track:
Here’s what he said when asked about the side’s key players:
“For my money, Dapo Afolayan is still the most impactful player in the team - but he has started the last couple of games from the bench.
“Dion Charles has started life at Bolton really well, scoring a belter against Shrewsbury last weekend.
“I also like the look of Marlon Fossey, who is on loan from Fulham - a flying wing-back and a proper athlete down the right flank.”
Read more HERE
Lee Johnson on facing Bolton
Sunderland narrowly beat Bolton 1-0 when the two sides met at the Stadium of Light in August.
Wanderers have slipped to 18th in the table since then but Johnson is still expecting a difficult match.
“It’s a really good game, Bolton are the highest possession team in all the leagues at home which is really interesting,” said the Sunderland boss.
“That will of course cause us problems, but at the same time maybe provide an opportunity to get our pressing game out which sometimes we are unable to do.
“I believe Bolton are a really good side.”
Team news
New Sunderland signings Patrick Roberts and Jack Clarke could make their Sunderland debuts today but are expected to start on the bench.
Johnson has also hinted that his squad could be bolstered by Bailey Wright or Alex Pritchard, who both missed the 1-0 win over Portsmouth due to calf strains.
Pritchard is at this stage believed to be most advanced in his recovery.
Goalkeeper Lee Burge is facing an extended absence from Sunderland action as the club continue to monitor his recent heart issues.
It’s Matchday!
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Sunderland’s League One fixture at Bolton.
The Black Cats got back on track with a win against Portsmouth last weekend but need to keep the pressure on the teams around them in the race for automatic promotion.
We’ll have all the build-up ahead of today’s match, as well as in-game analysis and post-match reaction.
Stick around and refresh the page for live updates throughout the day.