Wilson Isidor came off the bench to score the decisive goal as Sunderland beat Fulham 1-0 at the Stadium of Light on Sunday. The Haitian forward was demoted to the bench again, with Brian Brobbey handed the start under Regis Le Bris.
Isidor entered the game as a 65th-minute substitute with the score at 0-0. Granit Xhaka found Enzo Le Fee bursting through Fulham's backline on the right, and his cross found Isidor ahead of Joachim Andersen in the centre of the penalty area. The 25-year-old beat Bernd Leno with his shot, but it ricocheted off the post and the Cottagers cleared.
Isidor strikes five minutes after hitting the post
Just five minutes later, Nordi Mukiele found Habib Diarra down the line on the right, and the Senegalese midfielder put it on a plate for Isidor in a similar position to Le Fee's earlier cross. Learning from his earlier miss, Isidor put it straight down the middle past a rushing Leno to give Sunderland the lead.
That proved to be the only goal of the encounter, with Sunderland taking all three points from their first home match of the season.
Isidor needs to start against Brentford
Sunderland have just six days to rest and recover before their next Premier League clash, at the Gtech Community Stadium against Brentford on Saturday, September 5. The summer transfer window slams shut on Tuesday, September 2.
Isidor has just signed a new deal running through to 2030 and proved his worth with his clinical finish against Fulham. While Brobbey offers strength, stellar hold-up play and a marksman's eye on his day, the Dutchman went missing against Fulham, as he did against Ipswich a little over a week ago.
Isidor has once again proven to be the difference-maker for the Red and White Army, and deserves a chance to do so from the outset. It may be time for Le Bris to deploy both at the same time and have a shake-up in formation, as Isidor and Brobbey working together would be a force to be reckoned with.
However, that brings another problem: a glaring lack of depth up top. Should Isidor or Brobbey find themselves injured, the Black Cats have nobody in reserve. With just days remaining to do business, Florent Ghisolfi would be wise to target another out-and-out centre-forward for depth in Europe and cup competitions.
Diarra sparks injury concerns
Diarra emerged at the same time as Isidor, also starting from the bench. However, he was unable to finish the match. The 22-year-old came on, bagged an assist, and was back off and straight down the tunnel less than 20 minutes later, seemingly clutching at his hamstring. Chris Rigg took Diarra's place for the closing stages.
While Sunderland are well stocked in the heart of midfield, with Xhaka, Le Fee and Noah Sadiki likely to feature as Le Bris' starting three, without Diarra's involvement on the bench the Black Cats look a little short. Rigg and new signing Jules Ahoka were the only two who could do a shift in the engine room from the bench on Sunday. Dependent on the extent of Diarra's injury, Ghisolfi could look for further reinforcement in the centre of the park.
'Project 32' has to stop
Some Sunderland fans will have scoffed after seeing Trai Hume starting the match at right wing, with Thomas Meunier looking to have cemented his place as first-choice right back. The 24-year-old failed to put in a single half-decent cross from memory, and struggled to beat Antonee Robinson for the duration of his participation.
It's no secret that Le Bris is looking for more choice on the wing before Tuesday's transfer deadline, with Igor Paixao, Malick Fofana, Jack Grealish, Geny Catamo and Matias Soule all mentioned as of late. Given all of those names are predominantly left-sided attackers, it would be nice to see Sunderland secure someone who is equally comfortable playing on the right, given it's a position that requires most improvement at present.
