Graeme Murty says the reason Isaac Lihadji, Abdoullah Ba, Pierre Ekwah and Jewison Bennette played for Sunderland U21s was to get minutes into the legs. The quartet were the Black Cats' best players on the night, with Ba in particular rising to the occasion under the watchful eye of Tony Mowbray.
All four first-team players were left on the bench for Sunderland's defeat to Stoke City at the weekend, but were able to exact revenge for the young Wearsiders.
“I think that we were convincing in the way we approached the game,” Murty said after the game. “I think the first-team players in particular were respectful of the game, respectful of the group they dropped into and made sure they pushed on and did things properly.
