Robin Roefs stuns, 4/10 disappoints – Sunderland player ratings vs Nottingham Forest
Sunderland recorded their first away win of the Premier League season after defeating Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.
Jeff Stelling predicted Sunderland to struggle away from home as they were not in front of their fanatic home fans.
Wilson Isidor came close early on for the Black Cats before Omar Alderete headed home from a Granit Xhaka free-kick.
While they had to dig deep, Regis Le Bris’ side put in a defensive masterclass in the second half to clinch a 1-0 victory.
Robin Roefs keeps Sunderland in the game with goalkeeping exploits
Roefs may have been at fault against Aston Villa, but he went some way to redeeming himself against Forest.
The Netherlands international had little to do in the first half, but delivered an unbelievable performance in the second period.
As the game progressed, Ange Postecoglou’s men had more and more of the ball and kept on knocking on the Sundelrand door.
- Roefs made six saves
- He prevented 2.17 goals
- Made three high claims
Indeed, Roefs was called into action again and again and was made to pull off a flurry of saves to deny the Tricky Trees.
While it would have been difficult to find anyone who had heard of the shot-stopper before his move to the North East, he has quickly established himself as a key figure.
If he can keep up the same level of performance, then he could keep the Black Cats in the Premier League.
Arthur Masuaku struggles against Nottingham Forest
Le Bris may have hesitated to include Musuaku, given that he is more of an attacking option than Reinildo.
However, the left-back was handed his first Premier League start of the campaign in the absence of the suspended star.
While it was far from a nightmare performance for Masuaku, the Forest attackers found their way past him with relative ease at times.
Indeed, Le Bris was wise to act decisively on the defender and substituted him for Lutsharel Geertruida in the 59th minute.
With Reinildo suspended for the following two fixtures, it will be intriguing to see if Sunderland’s head coach continues to start him.
Sunderland player ratings vs Nottingham Forest
Robin Roefs – 9
Trai Hume – 6
Nordi Mukiele – 7
Omar Alderete – 8
Arthur Masuaku – 4
Chris Rigg – 5
Granit Xhaka – 8
Noah Sadiki – 7
Chemsdine Talbi – 6
Enzo Le Fee – 6
Wilson Isidor – 6
Subs
Dan Ballard – 4
Lutsharel Geertruida – 4
Bertrand Traore – 4
Brian Brobbey – 4
Simon Adingra – 4
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