Chelsea loanee Mason Burstow ended his long wait for a first Sunderland goal as the Black Cats beat Stoke 3-1 to ease the pressure on head coach Michael Beale.
The forward broke his duck in his 14th appearance for the club before Abdoullah Ba and Pierre Ekwah also scored to end the hosts’ run of three straight defeats in all competitions and move them level on points with sixth-placed Coventry in the Championship.
A Jenson Seelt own-goal was a mere consolation for Stoke, who remained 19th after their second straight loss.
Some Sunderland fans chanted for Beale to be sacked during last week’s defeat to Hull and the problems deepened for the former Rangers boss this week, with the Black Cats publishing a statement before kick-off on Saturday claiming midfielder Alex Pritchard had “made himself unavailable to play and expressed his desire to leave with immediate effect”.
But Beale and the Black Cats put those issues to one side against Steven Schumacher’s visitors.
The hosts were the brighter of the two sides from the off and had two good chances to break the deadlock in the opening quarter of an hour.
Jack Clarke has been the shining light for Sunderland this season and he could have added to his 13 goals when he blazed over from inside the box. Moments later, the former Tottenham and Leeds winger teed up midfielder Ekwah, who tried to catch out Stoke goalkeeper Daniel Iversen at his front post but hit the side-netting.
Stoke’s best chance of the first half came 10 minutes before the break. Midfielder Luke Cundle was denied by Anthony Patterson after a rampaging run from defender Ben Wilmot. The Potters kept the move alive and Bae Jun-ho looked certain to score only for Luke O’Nien to come to Sunderland’s rescue with a superb goal-line clearance.
Sunderland broke the deadlock two minutes before half-time. Dangerman Clarke darted down the left flank, his cross looped into the air and Ba nodded into the path of Burstow to bundle home his first goal of the season from close range.
Tyrese Campbell had a chance to level for Stoke just 22 seconds after the restart but lacked composure and ballooned his shot over the bar – and Sunderland quickly made the Potters pay.
Clarke was again involved, cutting in from the left after a rapid counter and teeing up Ba, who kept his cool and slotted home.
Ba created the third 20 minutes from time, picking out Ekwah, who found the bottom the corner from inside the box.
Stoke scored what proved to be a consolation four minutes later when a cross from ex-Sunderland defender Lynden Gooch was turned into his own net by Seelt.
Ronaldo motivated to keep playing at top level
Cristiano Ronaldo has no intention of stopping as he says he is still motivated to compete with the "young lions" coming through in the game.
Ronaldo is reportedly considering signing a contract extension to keep him at Al-Nassr until June 2026, taking him past his 41st birthday.
The Portugal international has scored 42 goals in 41 appearances for the Saudi Pro League club this season, and he insists he is still motivated to keep going.
Speaking on the Whoop podcast, he said: "I feel proud to have this age and still compete at the highest level. It's great, and it gives me motivation to carry on.
"If you look at my career for the last 20 years, my level is high. If you are top for 20 years, it's unbelievable.
"I do that, and I continue to do that. For me, it's a big achievement."
Ronaldo has scored an incredible 891 goals in his career and is the all-time leading scorer in men’s international football with 128 goals.
"My biggest motivation is to carry on," he added. "It's not easy to be at this level.
"To still push, to still motivate, to carry on, to score goals, to be in good shape, to compete with the young lions that are coming and that when they play against me, they want to show me that they are stronger and faster than me.
"You have to prepare very well, not just physically but mentally, too. This is the challenge.
"Talent without work is nothing and work without talent is nothing. They have to work together at the same time. I have both. I can't say that I have more of one than the other.
"Small details will make the difference. Consistency is the most difficult thing.
"Are you willing to do that? That's the main point, because everyone wants to be Cristiano, but doing it is difficult. Discipline is the most difficult thing."
Vilahamn wants to use FA Cup final defeat as 'beginning' for Tottenham Women
Tottenham Women manager Robert Vilahamn believes his side will use their FA Cup final defeat to start something special, rather than ending their good work.
Spurs were hammered 4-0 by Manchester United Women in Sunday's Wembley Stadium showpiece as Ella Toone and Rachel Williams were on target before Lucia Garcia's second-half double.
Vilahamn's side failed to manage a shot on target but the Spurs boss suggested his team will catch up to the women's elite clubs.
"The main thing I said was this is not the end, it is the beginning," Vilahamn said.
"We still have a gap between us and the top teams but that's normal. We are closing the gap but we haven't closed the gap yet."
Tottenham finished sixth in the Women's Super League as well as reaching this final, their first FA Cup showpiece appearance in their short history.
Vilahamn wants his Spurs players to use this defeat as motivation going forward.
"If you take away the feelings right now, you need to look at these players doing some incredible things this year," he said.
"We are at Wembley playing in front of our fans and they are actually enjoying it and staying, and supporting us after.
"We got a good experience today and we are learning how to play at Wembley more times. We need to look at it that way because the players are amazing."
Erik ten Hag: Man United fans are understanding of situation
Erik ten Hag is confident he still has the understanding of supporters after Manchester United's poor run of form continued with defeat to Arsenal.
United were beaten 1-0 by Premier League title chasers Arsenal at Old Trafford on Sunday in a game that saw them create little.
While United did well to restrict Arsenal's chances, they had just two shots on target themselves - long-rangers from Casemiro and Antony.
The Red Devils have had to contend with a number of injury problems this season, not least against Arsenal with a makeshift defence fielded.
And for that reason, Ten Hag - whose job beyond this season has been called into question - believes the fanbase remain supportive.
"They understand where we are and where this club is," he told Sky Sports. "We have so many injuries in key areas.
"The fans don't get what they deserve, but they understand this and that is why they are behind the team.
"I think that is why they are with us we are united. Hopefully we can pay them back in the future."
Ten Hag pointed out that United were without seven possible starters, forcing him to field veteran Jonny Evans alongside Casemiro at centre-back.
Casemiro was at fault for Arsenal's goal as he was slow getting back up the field, meaning Havertz was onside before teeing up Trossard.
Ten Hag, though, was not willing to point the finger of blame at the underperforming midfielder.
"In that situation he is a midfielder playing in that position and making a small mistake, but it has hard consequences," he said.
"Before that, in possession we could have done better in others positions. It's details."
Eighth-placed United have won just one of their past eight league matches in a run that includes a 4-0 thumping at Crystal Palace earlier in the week.
The Red Devils have lost 19 games in all competitions this season, which is their most since 1977-78 when also losing 19.
Asked if he believes he is the man to turn things around, Ten Hag said: "I have no doubt about this.
"Mostly, this team has the right spirit and they execute the rules and principles of the game even if they have to adapt in their positions.
"I can only be happy and it is a big compliment for this team that they executed all that they could and they were fighting."
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