Andy Welsh has lavished praise on Sunderland under-23s after they moved top of the Premier League 2 on Tuesday evening following victory at Everton.
The Toffees dominated large spells but were frustrated throughout as the young Black Cats produced a methodical display to limit the hosts to a few goalscoring chances.
Welsh's players grew in confidence as the game wore on and after a flurry of opportunities Tom Beadling’s free-kick landed perfectly on George Brady’s head and he planted his effort into the back of the net.
From there the young guns held firm to leapfrog Everton in the Premier League 2 table and extend their unbeaten start to the season to four games.
Speaking post-match Welsh couldn’t hide his delight and paid tribute to his player’s effort and commitment.
“When we arrived we knew how tough it was going to be and how strong they are,” he said.
“They paid us the ultimate compliment because they put out their best under-23s and needless to say we dealt with it very well.
“We handled the physicality and ended up with a superb result. A lot of our lads have been with the first team and their attitude and the way they have worked has been excellent.
He continued: “It's about development, making them ready for the next phase, rather than winning but at this age it’s all about learning to win football matches which is what they did very, very well tonight every single one of them plus the three subs we used.”
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