Bolton Wanderers delivered a huge blow to Sunderland’s Championship survival hopes with a Ben Alnwick inspired 1-0 win at the Macron Stadium.
Sunderland really could not afford to lose away at relegation rivals Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday night.
But, thanks to Zach Clough’s early goal, they did. A 1-0 defeat at the Macron leaves Chris Coleman’s Sunderland bottom of the Championship, three points from safety.
The Black Cats look to have used up almost every single one of their nine lives with successive relegations now looking a genuinely realistic prospect. And it will not help improve the mood on Wearside to remind Sunderland fans that arguably their most damaging loss yet owed much to the superb performance of a player they let go all the way back in 2007.
Ben Alnwick was expected to be Sunderland’s number one goalkeeper in the 2006/07 season after the departure of Kelvin Davis. But, after a number of mistakes, manager Roy Keane dropped him in favour of Darren Ward, and just halfway through the season he joined Tottenham for around £900,000, with Martin Fulop going in the other direction.
So the irony will not have been lost on Sunderland fans when Alnwick produced a Man of the Match display to condemn Coleman’s strugglers to yet another loss.
Immense
Alnwick was absolutely inspired against his former club, making one superb reflex save to deny Ashley Fletcher what looked a certain goal.
“He’s a player that’s getting better all the time. He’s been immense for us,” Bolton boss Phil Parkinson said after the game, as reported by the Chronicle.
“It wasn’t just his saves today, but it was his all round game. He was coming out for crosses at the end and that’s what you need as a defender to see your goalkeeper coming and taking the pressure off you.”
Considering the goalkeeping department has been something of an Achilles heel for Sunderland this season, with neither Jason Steele nor Robbin Ruiter impressing on a consistent basis, fans could be forgiven for wishing Alnwick was still at the Stadium of Light.