Sunderland win with a third of the ball and seven shots

Sunderland held on for a 3-2 League Cup win over Brentford, having scored all three of their goals before half-time, while Brentford had most of the ball and most of the chances.

Sunderland scored three times in the first 39 minutes, then had to survive a late scare. They took seven shots in the match, when the league average in this competition is 13.4 per side, and every one of them came from inside the box. Their scoring was concentrated in one spell, and the rest of the game belonged to the visitors in terms of possession.

Brentford had 67% of the ball and 16 shots, and 13 of those were inside the box. For the shot count alone, that is well above the league average of 13.4, so the visitors were the side creating the most chances. Possession figures for this competition were not available to compare against, so the 67% stands only as a description of how the ball was shared.

The clearest way to measure chances is expected goals, a figure that gives each shot a value based on how often shots like it go in. Brentford's total of 2.68 is well above the league average of 1.49, while Sunderland's 2.38 is also comfortably above it. In other words, both sides were making better than average chances, but Brentford made far more of them and still came away with fewer goals.

Djiamgone Jocelin Ta Bi was the most involved player for Sunderland, and his two assists came in the first half. He had a hand in the second and third goals, and he was given a 8.3 rating, the highest in the match for either side. Malick Fofana finished the second of those chances, and his nine ball duels won show how much of the work went into keeping the lead.

Brentford's answer came through Callum Wilson, who scored after a pass from Vitaly Janelt, and then through Igor Thiago, who scored in the 90th minute from a cross by Mathias Jensen. Thiago was rated 7.4, and that late goal was the only time Brentford were able to convert a chance in the second half. Sunderland's goalkeeper made four saves, which is the figure that kept the lead intact until the end.

The shot and possession numbers show a match in which the team with less of the ball scored the goals, while the team with more of it had to settle for the second spot. Brentford won five corners and committed fewer fouls, but they were the side that had to chase the score. Sunderland's win came from taking their three best chances, and Brentford's two late goals were not enough to change the result.

Player of the matchJ. Bi2 assists8.3

Timur Tuterov1 goal7.7

V. Janelt1 assist7.7

M. Fofana1 goal7.6