Wilson Isidor reveals Sunderland starting-place battle and how fans inspired instant redemption
Wilson Isidor has opened up on his fight for a Sunderland starting place and explained how the Stadium of Light crowd helped inspire his Fulham winner
Wilson Isidor has opened up about his battle with Brian Brobbey for Sunderland’s starting striker role and revealed how the Stadium of Light crowd helped him recover from hitting the post before scoring against Fulham.
Brobbey was preferred from the start as Régis Le Bris kept faith with the Dutchman, leaving Isidor to make his impact from the bench. The French striker did exactly that, first striking the woodwork before converting Habib Diarra’s low delivery to secure a 1-0 win.
Asked how he feels about not currently starting, Isidor said: “Of course. I'm focusing on myself more than anything. I'm here to help the team. The manager makes some decisions. Today was Brian. We don't know what's going to be next week. I got a good relationship with Brian, so that's not a bad thing.
“So, we know that we have to fight for one spot, but now the gaffer makes the decision. But whether it’s me or him, the most important thing for me is to be focused on my performance, on what I can bring to the team, and of course that the team wins.”
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Isidor’s response to his first miss was helped by the home crowd. Sunderland supporters immediately backed the striker after he hit the post, and he believes that reaction gave both him and the team fresh energy during a difficult afternoon.
“Yeah, of course,” Isidor said when asked if supporters had helped him react after an earlier miss. “I like it, and they helped me to make the switch to forget it quickly. And it was a good reaction from all the team, also. I think it pushed the team; it gave us a second wind. If I don't miss the first chance, there is no second, so I would have still preferred to score the first, but now the goal is here, 1-0; we take it and are very happy.
“The most important thing is to react every time. Reaction, reaction. We got a strong group, strong character. I think today, Nordie, Granit, Enzo, Reinildo, everybody, all the starting XI were amazing. And yeah, the most important was the reaction, and I think all the starting XI and the finishing players, we showed today that we can react.”