Gus Poyet talks up "special" Adam Johnson display

Sunderland manager Gus Poyet has praised the "special" performance of Adam Johnson after the winger scored a hat-trick in their 4-1 win against Fulham.

The former Manchester City man netted his first top-flight hat-trick to sink the Cottagers, and the Uruguayan boss talked up his player's display.

"[The performance] was as good as you can get," Poyet told Sky Sports News.

"We always say how special he is and we know the qualities that Johnno has. We need to help him play, and he's been doing it for the last few games.

"It's important to keep him happy and it was very easy for him today. We deserved the win."

The win moved the Black Cats off the bottom of the Premier League.