Pundit foretold Sunderland win at Luton Town with clever half-time prediction

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Sunderland’s win at Luton Town on Wednesday night was seemingly predicted at half-time by BBC pundit Gary Bennett.

The first half between Sunderland and Luton Town at Kenilworth Road was mostly Luton.

The Hatters came out with a clear game plan which was to get the ball forward, put the Sunderland defenders under constant pressure, and try and grab a goal before the break.

But Regis Le Bris’ men weathered the storm. They got to half-time at 0-0 and came out in the second half on top.

It wasn’t long before Chris Rigg put the Black Cats ahead. Then soon after Elijah Adebayo equalised for the home side, Romaine Mundle curled an effort from range to put Sunderland back in front.

Sunderland fans were impressed with Chris Mepham‘s performance on the night; he dominated the defensive statistics and summed up the Black Cats’ resilience against Luton.

After the game, Le Bris gave his verdict on Luton Town’s style of play, saying that he wasn’t sure how his players would handle it.

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Gary Bennett foretold Sunderland win at Luton Town with clever half-time prediction

Speaking at half-time, pundit Gary Bennett gave his verdict on the first 45, suggesting that the Hatters wouldn’t be able to maintain their first half tempo throughout and that Sunderland’s quality would shine through after the break.

And that’s exactly what happened. Bennett said on BBC Newcastle at half-time: “I enjoyed that first 45 minutes… because Sunderland stood up to that battle.

“They showed a side that we thought they didn’t have, and that was defending set-pieces, defending right throughout… we were man for man. We went and battled.

“We didn’t fall down. We stood up to them. And we’ve got to do that in the second half because you’ve seen that Luton, what they want to do; yes they want to get the ball forward as quickly as possible, but they want to bully you. That’s what they want to do.”

He continued: “When you look over the 45 minutes, who’s had the better chances? Sunderland. And as the game goes on, they [Luton] won’t be able to keep up that tempo.

“Our little bit of quality will show, and hopefully we’ll go on and make it happen.”

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The Championship top six after Sunderland win at Luton Town

The Championship table is looking very good from a Sunderland perspective right now; three points clear at the top after Burnley drew against Hull City on Wednesday.

Leeds United in 3rd are on level points, with Blackburn Rovers in 6th now six points behind the Black Cats.

Whilst it’s still early doors this season, we’re seeing new sides of Sunderland’s game as the campaign goes on, like Bennett suggests, and it’s certainly positive to see that Sunderland can manage different challenges.

The Championship top six is as follows: