Sunderland vs Birmingham City Match Preview
Sunderland have signed Ghana international John Mensah from Lyon on a loan deal, which will offset the departure of Titus Bramble for Wigan.
Meanwhile Trinidad and Tobago striker Kenwyne Jones has gone on to Stoke City. It seems there were communication problems between Jones and Black Cats’ boss Steve Bruce, who is apparently content to be free of the T & T man.
On the other hand, Bruce is delighted to sign Manchester United’s Danny Wellbeck on loan, saying "He's a young man but he'll fit into our squad fantastically well.''
Bruce, however, seeks another striker, and has expressed interest in Manchester City’s Craig Bellamy, who seems to be on the outside looking in at Eastlands.
Said Bruce, "There's a lot of clubs who would love Craig Bellamy. He's an individual and he's a fantastic player but whether it's possible, I'm not quite sure. I've been a big admirer of Craig's for a long, long time. If he's available, which it looks like he is, and if we could afford him, then I would love to bring Craig to the football club.''
A move to Sunderland might be a good one for Bellamy, who has already raised the specter of retirement should he not fit into Manchester City’s plans. A winger of Bellamy’s character would bring a new dimension to Wearside and as always he’d be a delight to watch.
With on-loan goalkeeper Joe Hart due for a return to Manchester City this season Birmingham manager Alex McLeish’s priority was to find a replacement. Ben Foster has been brought over from Manchester United and is now the new man between the sticks for the Blues.
Meanwhile defender Steven Carr has signed a new deal with Birmingham that will keep him until the end of the season. However, an attempt to bring Italy midfielder Mauro Camoranese over from Juventus has collapsed, with manager Alex McLeish stating "I have always been a big admirer but negotiations became protracted and I had a further think. I decided it was not quite the way forward for Birmingham at this particular time."
An attempt to bring AZ Alkmaar star Dembele to Birmingham has also fallen through, with the player opting to go elsewhere.
Sunderland vs Birmingham City Match Report
Bad day for Birmingham fullback Stephen Carr! The Irishman’s foul on Fraizer Campbell in the 24th minute resulted in the penalty that put the Black Cats one up. Then, in the 56th minute Carr’s attempt to head clear found its way past his keeper for the Black Cats’ second.
But Sunderland had been playing with 10 men since just prior to the end of the first half when Captain Lee Cattermole had been red carded. This undoubtedly worked in Birmingham’s favor as they clawed their way back through goals by Scott Dann in the 77th and Liam Ridgewell in the 88th.
Both managers, Sunderland’s Steve Bruce and Birmingham’s Alex McLeish, were unhappy fellows at the end of the day. Bruce because of the referee, whom he described as “out of his depth,” and McLeish because of the quality of his team’s performance, about which he said “I would hate to go through every game watching that.”
Sunderland 2-2 Birmingham
