Sunderland battled back from two goals down to seal a stunning win over Bournemouth

These were three points that were a reward for Sunderland’s resilience and also their perseverance.

They had started well here, full of intent and at times a bit of quality. And yet thanks to some bad luck, a little bit of sloppiness and some outrageously good finishing, they found themselves 2-0 down and on the brink with just fifteen minutes played.

To their credit, they kept playing and the space they had found in the opening exchanges was still there. A fiercely-contested penalty decision got them back into the game, but in the end they were good value for a win. Enzo Le Fee was outstanding, and Brian Brobbey’s winning goal cemented his arrival as a huge asset for Regis Le Bris.

It was also surely, given the circumstances, their best win yet.

Le Bris's decision to revert to a back four and move Le Fee back into the centre of midfield set the tone for a much more aggressive performance from the hosts, and the opening exchanges swung wildly from end to end. Bournemouth are a team who favour open games and leave plenty of space for the opposition, trusting that they can cause serious damage on the break.

It looked a game that would be packed with goals and chances, and were clinical finishing would be key. Sunderland were playing well, getting into good areas and getting a couple of early sights at goal through Chemsdine Talbi. The flip side of Sunderland's approach was that there was space on the counter for Bournemouth, Antoine Semenyo a clear early threat on his return to the XI. Sunderland would have been happy with their start and their intent, and yet found themselves looking up at the scoreboard to see they were 2-0 down after 15 minutes. There was some genuine bad luck with the first, Mukiele losing his footing in the slippery conditions to allow Semenyo to get to the byline. From there it was a truly wicked cross, one which Evanilson spurned as he turned his effort onto Roefs and then the post. It dropped kindly for Amine Adli, at one stage a summer transfer target for Sunderland, who made no mistake from close range. Sunderland responded well but conceded again from their own corner, Talbi playing a pass infield that Traore didn't read. Adams was able to break away from the winger and spotted Roefs off his line, finding the back of the net with a genuinely outrageous effort from just inside the centre circle.

It summed up the game - Sunderland were on the front foot but Bournemouth looked as if they could score at any minute. To their credit the hosts kept plugging away, and they got their reward when a spell of pressure led to a penalty as Reinildo got across Alex Scott and drew the foul. Le Fee held his nerve impressively during a lengthy VAR check, smashing his penalty into the roof of the net.

Sunderland continued to press and find space without carving out too many more chances, right in the game at the interval.

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The second half had much to live up to, and to say the early exchanges didn’t disappoint would be an understatement. Sunderland won an early free kick and despite the initial cross from Le Fee being blocked, the hosts continued to probe patiently. Xhaka found Traore with a nice little pass and from there the winger did very well, his low effort almost stopped by Petrovic but finding its way into the bottom corner. Bournemouth poured forward in response and had the ball in the back of the net as Semenyo drove in another good cross, but Evanilson was just offside as he poked it in at the back post. It was breathless, brilliant stuff.

In the moments that followed Sunderland had to ride a wave of Bournemouth pressure, dropping for the first time into the familiar low block that has worked so well this season. While Roefs didn’t really have a save of note to make, the intensity from the home side had dropped just enough to invite Bournemouth into the contest and troubled Le Bris enough to make a triple sub on the hour. Brobbey’s arrival gave Sunderland the energy they needed to get ahead. He almost scored when Le Fee found him with a good through ball, the goalkeeper ultimately doing enough to get off his line and smother the ball. But when the Black Cats won a corner not long after, Le Fee found his team mate again with an inswinger of quality. Brobbey got in front of his man and leaning backwards, found the bottom corner with a deft header. The Stadium of Light erupted.

Sunderland dropped into their low block as Bournemouth threw bodies forward, and though Roefs had little to do the hosts were fortunate that a stunning drive from Tavernier struck the crossbar and bounced clear. A series of fouls rose Bournemouth’s frustration here, with Iraola and two of his staff members booked for their protestation.s. That frustration bubbled over in eight minutes of stoppage time when substitute Lewis Cook was shown a red card for a forearm smash on Noah Sadiki as he ran past.

Bournemouth kept pushing but Sunderland held on for a priceless win.