- Sunderland doomed to Championship
- King scores 15th goal of season
- Boruc stops Defoe several times
- Cherries go 10th
- O’Shea “distraught”, Moyes wants to stay
Timely saves from Artur Boruc kept Bournemouth in the match, and Joshua King’s latest addition to his pile of goals sent Sunderland to the Championship with a 1-0 win at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.
The loss ends the Black Cats’ longest tenure in the Premier League at 11 years, and the Black Cats were booed off the pitch.
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Steve Cook had an in-tight shot meander through a pile of bodies but wind wide of the post, as Bournemouth had Sunderland living inside its own half.
Sunderland created one threat on goal when Fabio Borini tore into a 25-yard shot from a diagonal angle. Artur Boruc was caught offguard but parried the ball, and Jermain Defoe blazed the rebound wide.
Defoe curled a shot just over the bar in the 19th minute, as the Black Cats showed another sign of life.
Joshua King nearly made Defoe pay for his miss by chipping Jordan Pickford and hitting both the cross bar and right post.
The Black Cats could have been ahead when Didier N’Dong surprised by heading Bournemouth’s clearance over the fray and onto Defoe’s foot, but the striker’s chance went directly to Boruc.
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92% - Sunderland have currently spent 92% of the 2016-17 @premierleague season in the relegation zone (238 of 259 days). Impending. pic.twitter.com/jSkwX9WNSN
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) April 29, 2017
[ MORE: Full lineups, stats, box score ]
Boruc needed extension to parry Borini as Sunderland buzzed into the second half.
Wahbi Khazri was denied by a sliding Steve Cook in the 55th minute, and had two chances to serve when his corner was blocked. Lamine Kone headed over the frame, and it remained scoreless.
There was a scuffle in the 75th minute, calling three referees to the pitch to determine discipline after a dozen players came together. Fabio Borini and Harry Arter both saw yellow, but the sides remained at 11 each.
Khazri and King had penalty kick claims denied less than a minute apart in the last 10 minutes of play.
Boruc denied Defoe moments before Cook’s back directed the striker’s shot over the frame.
That’s when Bournemouth broke on a counter, with King slotting behind Pickford in a goal that effectively ended Sunderland’s PL tenure with two minutes to play.