Kyril Louis-Dreyfus joined by guests at Birmingham plus early withdrawal for Manchester Utd man vs Sunderland

It had been an excellent performance from the Manchester United loanee, who produced two excellent moments to give the Black Cats a 2-1 win at Birmingham.

First, he produced a dazzling piece of skill, with several opposition players around him, before setting up Ellis Simms to convert with a low finish.

Amad then scored, as Sky commentator Lee Hendrie put it, a goal of the season contender, as the forward cut inside of defender Auston Trusty on the right before curling a shot into the top corner.

Birmingham substitute Lukas Jutkiewicz pulled a goal back 12 minutes from time to make it a nervy finish, yet Sunderland held on.

Here are some of the moments you may have missed:

Youngsters in the squad

There were some new faces in Sunderland’s travelling contingent who made the trip to St Andrew’s.

Due to injuries in defence and Luke O’Nien’s suspension, teenager Zak Johnson, 18, was named on the bench for just the second time in a league game.

Fellow academy prospects Tom Watson, 16, and Chris Rigg, 15, were also part of the group at St Andrew’s and took part in the pre-match warm-up, despite not being named in the matchday squad.

A great and valuable moment for all three.

Manchester United loanee rides his luck

Amad wasn’t the only player on loan from Manchester United, with 19-year-old Hannibal Mejbri starting in Birmingham’s midfield.

Mejbri received the first yellow card of the match in the 29th minute for a late tackle on Jack Clarke, and then rode his luck before half-time.

While on a booking, the Birmingham man clipped Sunderland defender Danny Batth when the latter was on the floor, yet play carried on.

Mejbri then had a tussle with Dan Neil close to the away end, prompting chants of “Dan Neil, he’s one of our own,” from the Sunderland supporters.

It was therefore no surprise to see Mejbri substituted as part of a triple change from Birmingham boss John Eustace in the 58th minute.

Kyril Louis-Dreyfus in attendance

After meeting with supporters as part of a public appearance earlier in the week, Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus was in attendance at St Andrew’s.

The Black Cats chairman was joined by guests in the directors box and was captured by the Sky Sports cameras.

So too was Sunderland’s Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman, who spent 14 years at Birmingham before joining the Black Cats.

Late Birmingham penalty appeal

Sunderland were left hanging on in the closing stages, though, as Birmingham made several changes and altered their shape to play with three strikers in Jutkiewicz, Scott Hogan and Troy Deeney.

Goalkeeper Anthony Patterson made a few excellent saves, one to dent former Black Cats defender Dion Sanderson.

Then, in the seventh minute of stoppage time, the hosts were appealing for a penalty when Neil pulled back substitute Tahith Chong on the edge of the box.

READ MORE: Phil Smith’s Sunderland player ratings as one Cats man earns 9 in Birmingham win

Sunderland, on that occasion, were fortunate that referee Andy Madley waved play on.