Dick Advocaat fell to defeat in his first match as Sunderland manager this evening as West Ham United ran out 1-0 winners at Upton Park.
The Black Cats squandered the best chance of the first half when Jermain Defoe raced through on goal, only to blaze his effort high and wide with just the keeper to beat.
The winner came with just two minutes remaining as Mark Noble lifted the ball into the path of Diafra Sakho, who lashed his effort into the bottom corner.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at whether the Hammers were worthy winners in East London.
Match statistics
WEST HAM
Shots: 15
On target: 4
Possession: 54%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 14
SUNDERLAND
Shots: 7
On target: 3
Possession: 46%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 11
Was the result fair?
In truth, neither side deserved to win this match. The quality was poor throughout from both sides and it was evident that these were two clubs low on confidence and form. Neither could keep hold of the ball for any substantial period of time, usually hoisting long balls forward that only served to gift possession back to the opposition. It was a scrappy game and certainly not one for the neutrals.
Having said that, West Ham will feel that they earned the three points. They had more possession and more shots than the visitors, while the few periods of sustained pressure did come from the hosts. If either side edged this one then it was the Hammers, but, for a fair chunk of the game it was Sunderland who looked the more dangerous on the break. A draw would have been the fairest result, but a home win is not entirely unjust.
West Ham's performance
In the build-up to this match, Sam Allardyce stressed that the result was more important than the performance, and the subsequent display from his side bore all the hallmarks of that being the case. West Ham have endured a poor spell of form recently, but that has come in a torrid run of fixtures and today was the most likely source of three points that they have had for some time. They got their long overdue win, but it wasn't pretty.
One of Allardyce's tasks this season was to get his side playing more attractive football, but this was anything but easy on the eye as the Hammers put cross after cross into the box. If reports are to believed, his job could hinge on the final stages of this season, and performances like this are unlikely to do him any favours. His side did enjoy more of the ball and have more shots, but they rarely posed much of a threat before Sakho's late winner.
Things improved a little for the hosts after they brought Carlton Cole on at half time to give Sakho some support, but they could have had no complaints had this match ended goalless. Still, a win is a win and the Irons will now look to use this as a springboard towards a strong end to the campaign. They are back up into ninth now and have a relatively kind run-in ahead of them.
Sunderland's performance
Often when a new manager comes into the club, there is an immediate upturn in form as the boss breathes new life into his players. Sunderland were on the receiving end of it against Tim Sherwood's Aston Villa last weekend, but there was none of that this afternoon. It was certainly an improvement on the debacle which ultimately cost Gus Poyet his job, but it was still a limp and uninspiring display from the Black Cats.
There are positives to take from the defeat, though. Defoe looked dangerous on the break and the likes of Connor Wickham and Steven Fletcher got up in support of him to pose more of an attacking threat. Vast improvement is still needed in that respect - Sunderland have now scored just one goal in their last seven games - but Advocaat will have seen enough to suggest that his side can cause other teams problems in the final third.
Defensively they also looked solid for large spells of the match, and they may consider themselves unfortunate to have conceded such a late winner. Advocaat does not have much time to build on those positives, however, and results are the only thing that matters now. The Dutchman was brought in as a quick fix but, with just one point separating his new side from the bottom three, he has some work to do to avoid being relegated for the first time in his long career.
Sports Mole's man of the match
James Collins: It was slim pickings for this award, with a general dearth of quality on both sides. However, James Collins enjoyed a good afternoon and always seemed to be in the right place to clear any danger. He could have perhaps dealt with Defoe a little better when the striker ran in behind, but it was a commanding display from the West Ham centre-back on the whole,
Biggest gaffe
One of the moments that Defoe did get in behind came following a Cheikhou Kouyate error that saw the makeshift centre-back misjudge a header, gifting the ball away and leaving him out of position. His blushes were spared by Defoe missing the best chance of the first half.
Referee performance
Lee Mason had a number of penalty claims to deal with this afternoon and got them all right. Aside from that, he only went to his pocket once in a relatively straightforward, if a little scrappy, game.
What next?
West Ham: The Hammers are up against another struggling outfit after the international break as they face Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.
Sunderland: Sunderland, meanwhile, must gear themselves up for the Tyne-Wear derby against Newcastle United on April 5.
Barney Corkhill
