Silk and steel. Sunderland's win at Birmingham City was a showcase for both aspects of the Black Cats' game.
Two slick goals, allied to dogged, determined, bodies-on-the-line defending to withstand a late assault from the Blues.
The mercurial talent of Amad lit up St Andrew's, with his clever footwork on the edge of the box ending with an assist for Ellis Simms inside the opening half-hour as the fit-again forward scored his first goal since August. Amad's assist was then matched by that of Dan Neil just after half-time, as the latter threaded a perfect throughball for the on-loan Manchester United winger to race into the penalty area and curl a left-foot shot in off the post - a stunning finish to a brilliant move.
