A late Patrick van Aanholt goal cancelled out Nacer Chadli’s strike to make it honours even at the Stadium of Light.
Sunderland manager David Moyes admits his side dropped two points in their 1-1 draw to West Brom, as reported by the club’s website.
Nacer Chadli scored in the first half to make it three goals in his first four appearances for The Baggies, with Sunderland staring down the barrel of a third straight Premier League defeat.
But substitute Patrick van Aanholt struck the equaliser in the 83rd minute to lift The Black Cats off the bottom of the table on goal difference, with bottom club Stoke playing tomorrow against Manchester United.
Although he was pleased at his side’s resilience to come back from a goal down, Moyes conceded that a draw was not enough as he faces a huge task to save Sunderland from relegation with just two points from their first seven games.
He told the club’s website: “Their endeavour to keep going and knocking at the goal, I have to praise the players for that,” he said. “It was an uphill task because West Brom are the masters of keeping a lead.
“We kept at it and I am glad we could give the supporters something in the end. For me it’s disappointing because after 75 minutes we were still 1-0 down.
“We got to 1-1 and we tried to win it but it’s two points dropped.”
Sunderland’s leaky defence continues to plague Moyes. He recalled John O’Shea to his back four, but despite praising the Irishman’s calming influence, the stability and strength in The Black Cats’ backline that was clear to see under Sam Allardyce has all but disappeared.
With back-to-back away games against fellow strugglers Stoke and West Ham, no points against either side could spell serious trouble for the club and put their top-flight status in jeopardy.
Having been fighting against the tide for the last few years and surviving by the skin of their teeth, this could be the year in which Sunderland’s luck finally runs out.
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