Kevin Phillips wowed by 'unbelievable' moment from Sunderland star in dramatic win vs Middlesbrough
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Sunderland legend Kevin Phillips has hailed Enzo Le Fée for his “unbelievable” contribution to the Black Cats’ winning goal in their 3-2 victory over Middlesbrough on Monday night.
Regis Le Bris’ men recorded their first league double over the Teessiders in more than 60 years with three points at the Riverside, and had their January signing to thank in large part for the historic result.
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Hide AdAfter having provided the assist for a Wilson Isidor strike to make it 2-1 shortly after half-time, Le Fée was at the centre of Sunderland’s eventual winner too, producing a sublime first-time touch to take him away from full-back Luke Ayling before firing a cross into the box that would ultimately deflect off Ryan Giles and into the back of the Boro net.
And speaking after the match during his punditry duties for ITV, Phillips was quick to hail the Frenchman for his moment of magic in the build-up to the decisive own goal. He said: “Maybe that [the winning goal] was a reward because they kept pressing. This was an unbelievable touch from a player who showed some really good glimpses tonight.
“You can see why they’ve brought him there. It’s whipped in with pace, and there’s bodies blocking his [Giles’] view as well - you have to say, he should probably be adjusting his feet a little bit better there.
“I said beforehand, he’s gone for a lot of money in his career. First half, I thought he showed some good touches, but he grew into the game. And don’t forget, I think that’s only his third [sic] appearance for Sunderland. The expectation when you come to a club like Sunderland, playing in big stadiums and playing in front of 40-odd thousand at the Stadium of Light, he’ll get better. Played the full game tonight - he’s a good player.”
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Addressing Sunderland’s display more broadly - as well as what it could mean for their promotion hopes this season - Phillips added: “I think what it has shown is that they’re more than capable of coming to places like this, and when you need a top result and a top performance, they’re capable of doing it - even with a really, really young squad. Really impressed.
“I thought for the first 30 minutes Middlesbrough were the better team, could’ve been a couple of goals up, but from then on, the momentum going into half-time was with Sunderland. I said at half-time, can they keep that momentum going into the second half? A draw might have been a fair result, but I think they deserved their luck because of the way they kept going and kept going and kept going.
“They’ve got energy, they’ve got youth, they’ve got no fear in the team, they’ve got people who can score goals. When you’re challenging for a title, you need that little bit of luck as well, and they got that this evening.”
Your next Sunderland read: Chris Rigg's anti-Newcastle United flag, Wilson Isidor's message to Mike Dodds, Enzo Le Fee injury worry
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