West Brom boss delivers verdict on red card and Sunderland defeat as Mike Dodds responds to Dan Ballard boos

Carlos Corberan said his West Brom players need to manage their emotions better after Brandon Thomas-Asante's red card proved to be the difference on Saturday afternoon, but aimed a dig at Dan Ballard for his challenge on Josh Maja earlier this season.

Ballard was loudly booed by the West Brom fans throughout the game after his challenge at the Stadium of Light led to a long injury lay-off for Maja, and the defender was on the receiving end of the challenge that saw Thomas-Asante shown a second yellow. Corberan did add that he had been disappointed with aspects of West Brom's performance, and particularly that they had conceded from a set piece.

"The second yellow card had a massive impact," Corberan said.

"You can have desire, but when you have a yellow card, you need to increase the calm.

"We then conceded from the situation which we must avoid. We knew we would have to take risks, with a player less, and you know with those risks you can concede, but to concede from a set piece after losing a player...it is painful.

"If the referee understood it to be a yellow card, it has been our mistake to achieve two yellow cards. It's a lesson for Brandon and it's a lesson for us. We haven't had the experience to play with a player less since I arrived. I know for some teams how much of a disadvantage it can be.

"For me it was unfair that in the first game, they injured Maja," he added.

"It was a terrible action. It was unbelievable. The player who scored that day injured a player and the referee didn't send him off or give him a yellow card. It was ridiculous - not just because it was against us, I am talking about football. If somebody today breaks their limits with two actions, they're two yellow cards. When you have a yellow card, you must control yourself.

"If something makes an unbelievably dangerous action, and Maja has been out of the game for four months...I don't know if these things are in the subconscious of the players, but I can tell you that we should've managed that situation better.

"I'm disappointed with the result and disappointed with how some things were going during the game," Corberan added.

"In general, when it was 11 v 11, we were a little bit better than them because we didn't concede many chances. We had control, but we didn't enjoy enough to have control. When you have a desire to achieve something, you have to increase your calmness and intelligence.

"Instead of making Sunderland suffer, we were sharing the ball more than I would like to. These are things that are normal and you can correct them, but before the rest time it was the moment – when you have a yellow card, you need to increase the calm. In two minutes we have lost one player and conceded a goal from a corner."

Sunderland interim boss Mike Dodds admits he was surprised by the reaction Ballard received, but says it probably worked in favour of his team in the end.

“When you have a group like ours, and the opposition fans want to give some stick, they’ll stick up for each other," Dodds said.

"It brings the group closer together, but Dan is a big boy. He’s an international, he’s a Premier League player in waiting for me. He can take it. I was a bit surprised. I am always respectful to the fans, but the first boo did take me by surprise. He’s a great kid, Dan. West Brom fans target him, that’s fine, it’s a part of the game. Dan showed today he can handle that side of the game, but I didn’t need today as confirmation.”