Amad Diallo stepped up once again for Sunderland as he netted a stunner in a comeback win.
The former Rangers loanee has found the kind of form Giovanni van Bronckhorst was hoping he would get when he snapped him up on a loan deal from Manchester United but things didn't work out in Glasgow for the attacker. However, fast forward 12 months and he's really proved a key signing for Tony Mowbray as he kept alive hopes of an end of season play-off spot with the winner against Birmingham City at the Stadium of Light.
The 20-year-old took a nice touch out wide from a cross-field ball before charging down towards the box. He skipped inside past two defenders with a lovely piece of skill before curling his effort across the goalkeeper into the bottom right hand corner to send the home fans wild. It was a 12th league goal of the campaign for the one-time Ibrox man.
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His transformation this season has him up for the Player of the Year award in a sensational post-Rangers turnaround. Former Celtic winger Patrick Roberts also played a starring role as he assisted Sunderland's leveller with a header across goal, but he did have a massive chance of his own to steal the headlines but blazed well over after being put through on goal. He did look down on the turf in disgust after a lovely one-two move to put him one on one with the goalkeeper.
The Black Cats win leaves them just two points behind Blackburn Rovers in sixth spot - having played one game more.
Mowbray and Co have four huge final games of the campaign to come starting midweek against Huddersfield before matches against West Brom, Watford and Preston. They are unbeaten in their last five matches with notable draws against runaway leaders Burnley and promotion pushing Luton Town.
On the result, Mowbrary told Chronicle Live: "It was an important time to score our first goal, because we started really sharp in the first 10 minutes - particularly down the right-hand side creating chances - and then from one of their first attacks, they go and score.
"It was important to score before half-time to give the dressing room the confidence and belief that we could go on and win the game, and I think we left the dressing room at half-time believing we would go on and win the game. It's finding a way to win, really, isn't it?
"When you've got players like Amad in your team who can do what he did today, and what he did in the reverse fixture which was a very similar type of goal, you've always got a chance. Jack Clarke has done it many times this season, Patrick Roberts has done it, Amad has done it, so we do have players in our team that can unlock the best of defensive units.
"We found a way today to win what was a tough game, an attritional game, against a team that came to try and frustrate us trying to play through them. It's probably the only way we can play because we don't have a target forward or a forward with great speed, so it does give teams a bit of sugar to get some success from us.
"But we kept going and we found a way, so I'm pleased for the players and pleased for the supporters, and we are already in the dressing room looking forward to Tuesday night. We'll be in tomorrow to see who is fit and available, obviously Dennis is suspended now so that throws another selection issue into the scenario for us but we are looking forward to Tuesday and seeing if we can find three points against Huddersfield."
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