Sam Allardyce wants red card rule changed

Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce has said that the rule that sees a player sent off after conceding a penalty should be changed after his side beat local rivals Newcastle United 3-0 on Sunday.

The 61-year-old's side profited from such a decision against his former club when Magpies defender Fabricio Coloccini was dismissed for bringing down Steven Fletcher in the penalty area, from which Adam Johnson opened the scoring.

Despite the decision changing the game in favour of the Black Cats, Allardyce claimed that just the punishment of conceding a penalty is enough for the penalised team.

"It is the rules sadly," he told BBC Sport. "I think that a penalty is enough. "It is a foul and only a penalty. Our fans would not agree but as a football man I would like to see the rule changed."

The victory was Sunderland's sixth in a row against their bitter rivals, and lifted them off the bottom of the Premier League table.