Sunderland 3-0 West Ham United Player Ratings: Habib Diarra Rated 7.5/10 as Sunderland Stun West Ham United On Their Return To the Premier League

Sunderland took on West Ham United on matchday 1 of the 2025/26 English Premier League on 16th August, 2025, at 3:00 PM (GMT), at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland. Sunderland are back in the Premier League after 8 long years, and they faced a gritty West Ham side in their very first match after their return to the English top flight.

West Ham United started strongly and looked the better of the two teams. They pressed well and maintained possession for most of the game. Sunderland took their own sweet time and grew into the game gradually. Both keepers made good saves in the first few opening minutes to keep the score level at 0-0. Sunderland had their moments but were looking for a bit of luck in the danger areas. The first half ended without a goal, as both teams headed back to the dressing room with a lot to improve.

In the second half, Sunderland came back strongly and were repaid for their bravery as Eliezer Mayenda headed in from a brilliant Omar Alderete cross to put Sunderland ahead in the 61st minute. The Stadium of Light erupted in joy, and their voices grew louder, which intimidated West Ham a bit. Sunderland kept pushing hard despite efforts from West Ham and were rewarded with another goal as Daniel Ballard powered in his header past Hermansen's right hand to double the lead for the home side. In the 92nd minute, Wilson Isidor made it three for Sunderland with a brilliant curler from the edge of the box. West Ham tried really hard but were unable to find the back of the net. Sunderland got their deserved three points at the end of the final whistle. Here are the Sunderland vs West Ham United Player Ratings.

Sunderland Player Ratings

Here are Sportsdunia's Sunderland Player Ratings.

Goalkeeper:

Robin Roefs - 6.5/10

Roefs made a good save early in the game from Jarred Bowen and held his ground really well. He was decent with the ball at his feet, too. Made a brilliant save in the dying minutes to keep a clean sheet.

Defenders:

Trai Hume - 6/10

Hume often drifted infield to overload the midfield for Sunderland and played quite a few nice passes to Chemsdine Talbi on the right flank. Defensively, he was quite solid.

Daniel Ballard - 7/10

Daniel Ballard used his physicality well to contain Nicklas Fullkrug. The centre back stepped forward at times to intercept the passes and covered the spaces really well. Made a last-ditch block to deny Diouf from opening the scoring in the first half. Scored the second goal for Sunderland with a brilliant header.

Jenson Seelt - 6/10

Seelt was instrumental in playing the ball out from the back, displaying neat on-the-ball skills. He held the defensive line quite well and cleared a good number of West Ham crosses. He was substituted at half-time as he seemed to carry a niggle.

Reinildo Mandava - 6.5/10

Reinildo Mandava made numerous darting runs on the left flank, providing an option on the overlap for Sunderland. The Mozambican was decent in defensive transitions too, keeping the likes of Aaron Wan-Bissaka in check.

Midfielders:

Habib Diarra - 7.5/10

Diarra was quite lively in the middle of the park as he played neat one-twos with his teammates and tried to take on the defenders on his own. He got into dangerous positions with the ball and even had a shot saved from Hermansen early on in the game.

Granit Xhaka - 6.5/10

The veteran Swiss player's return to the Premier League was a decent one. Granit Xhaka played at the heart of the midfield and intercepted a lot of dangerous West Ham United passes. He got forward with the ball many a time and got into good positions in and around the West Ham box.

Noah Sadiki - 6/10

Sadiki tried his best to keep up with his other two partners in the midfield but was a bit dull overall. His passes were decent but not aggressive.

Forwards:

Chemsdine Talbi - 5.5/10

Chemsdine Talbi brought his trickery to the game and was quite lively on the right flank. He put a good number of crosses into the West Ham United box, but they were largely overhit.

Eliezer Mayenda - 7/10

Mayenda dropped deep at times to help out his midfielders and was quite successful in holding the ball and playing it in the path of a better-positioned teammate. Scored the opening goal of the game with a nice header to put the home team ahead.

Simon Adingra - 6/10

Simon Adingra used his pace well on the left-hand side to get past Wan-Bissaka, but the Congolese got the better of him most of the time.

Substitutes:

Omar Alderete - 7/10

Came on made a massive impact as he assisted Mayenda with a lovely cross into the box.

Enzo Le Fee - 5/10

Wilson Isidor - 7/10

Scored a brilliant curler to make it three for Sunderland on the day.

Chris Rigg - NA

Manager:

Regis Le Bris - 7/10

Le Bris fielded a 4-3-3 formation with three physically solid midfielders. His team maintained their defensive shape well and were patient in attack. They had a few openings through neat one-touch plays but were unable to make more out of it.

West Ham United Player Ratings

Here are Sportsdunia's West Ham United Player Ratings.

Goalkeeper:

Mads Hermansen - 6/10

Hermansen made a good save in the first half to deny Diarra from opening the scoring for Sunderland. He played quite well with the ball at his feet and looked calm under pressure during set-pieces.

Defenders:

Jean-Clair Todibo - 5.5/10

Todibo held his ground well and made a good number of tackles to disrupt the Sunderland attacks. Should have marked Ballard better for Sunderland's second goal.

Maximilian Kilman - 6/10

Kilman brought his experience to the game and thwarted the Sunderland attacks with ease. He stepped forward at times to play the ball out from the back and did it quite comfortably.

Nayef Aguerd - 5.5/10

Aguerd was rock solid at the back and defended well against Chemsdine Talbi. The Moroccan held the defensive line well and covered the spaces quite efficiently. However, he should have done better during Mayenda's goal.

Midfielders:

Aaron Wan-Bissaka - 6/10

Aaron Wan-Bissaka provided width for West Ham United on the right-hand side and made a good number of overlapping runs. Defensively, he was on point with his tackling.

James Ward-Prowse - 5.5/10

James Ward-Prowse regulated the flow of play quite well and controlled the tempo for West Ham in the middle of the park. His set-pieces were a bit dull today, something that isn't the case usually.

Lucas Paqueta - 5/10

Pacqueta often found himself isolated in the midfield area as he was heavily marked by the likes of Xhaka and Sadiki. He got into good positions at times but couldn't do much with the ball at his feet.

Guido Rodriguez - 5.5/10

Rodriguez was soild defensively as he made a good number of important tackles to win the ball back or clear an imminent danger. Offensively, he provided little to nothing.

El Hadji Malick Diouf - 6/10

Diouf was quite lively on the left-hand side and made a good number of precisely-timed runs into the Sunderland danger area. His goal-bound shot was saved brilliantly by Ballard off the line in the first half.

Forwards:

Jarrod Bowen - 6.5/10

Jarrod Bowen was undoubtedly the best player for West Ham United in the game. Bowen made some nice dribbles and carried the ball well to create chances for the East London side and saw his shot saved in the first half by Roefs.

Niclas Fullkrug - 6/10

Fullkrug combined well with Bowen up front as he played neat one-twos with the Englishman and also created space for Bowen to exploit from time to time. He dropped deep at times to hold the ball and played it to a better-positioned teammate.

Substitutes:

Callum Wilson - 5/10

Tomas Soucek - 5/10

Andy Irving - NA

Manager:

Graham Potter - 6/10

Graham Potter fielded a 3-4-1-2 formation with Bowen and Fullkrug up front. His team kept most of the ball and looked the better team on the pitch. However, they lacked the finishing touch in the final third, which cost them the game in the end. They were too lazy to deal with the aerial balls, as both of the goals came from headers.

Sportsdunia Player of the Match: Habib Diarra