Sunderland beat Stoke City’s Under-23 side on penalties.
Sunderland earned a bonus point on Tuesday night in the Checkatrade Trophy after their win on penalties against Stoke City’s Under-23 side, and some fans were delighted with Alim Ozturk’s performance.
Sunderland and Stoke both missed plenty of chances throughout the night at the Stadium of Light, meaning the match finished 0-0 and went to penalties.
Checkatrade Trophy rules mean that though both sides earned a point with the 0-0 draw, a bonus point is up for grabs by winning the penalty shootout. Sunderland scored four successive spot kicks, earning them a second point.
It sees Jack Ross’ side sit in second in Group A of the competition, with Carlisle top after they beat Morecambe within 90 minutes to earn all three points.
Sunderland made eight changes following their draw against Oxford United at the weekend, with only Turkish defender Ozturk, Chris Maguire and Josh Maja remaining in the side. They faced the likes of Charlie Adam and Moritz Bauer.
Some Sunderland fans reacted on Twitter to the result, and many praised the performance of summer signing Ozturk, 25, as he churned out an impressive display despite a rocky start to his Sunderland career.
Many supporters were instantly critical of the former Hearts defender after mistakes against Sheffield Wednesday in the Carabao Cup, but he is slowly beginning to change minds and Tuesday night’s outing will have helped do just that.
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