Sunderland 1 Portsmouth 2

Picture: uk.eurosport.yahoo.com

Pompey took away all three points after Jermain Defoe scored an injury time penalty.

Portsmouth have been unlucky in their last three games, with a 1-1 draw at home against Fulham, a 1-0 defeat to Liverpool through a Steven Gerrard penalty, and a 2-1 loss to Wigan at home despite hitting the bar four times and having the ball cleared off the line three times.

So bearing that in mind, everyone at Pompey was up for taking all three points back to Fratton Park this week.

Manager Tony Adams made two changes to his side that lost to Wigan the week before, Noe Pamarot came in for Armand Traore, so that Nadir Belhadj could push up the wing, as well as match-fit Niko Kranjcar starting ahead of penalty prat Papa Bouba Diop.

It didn't start well for the visitors as Andy Reid dispossessed Lassana Diarra before picking out Djibril Cisse with an spectacular 60-yard pass, with Cisse not hesitating to slot it through the legs of David James and into the back of the net.

James was forced to make several crucial saves during the first half as Roy Keane's Sunderland pushed on for a second goal.

Sunderland nearly doubled their advantage minutes later as Keiran Richardson clipped the outside of the post with his right-footed shot.

James tipped Cisse's shot over the bar as the French striker met Danny Collins' cross with a powerful header, before saving another from Cisse, fumbling the ball past the post for a corner.

Pompey had been far out-played in the first half, and it took until 35 minutes in to the game for the Blues to trouble Sunderland keeper Marton Fulop as an ambitious effort surprisingly from Sol Campbell, as the Pompey captain attempted an overhead kick.

Half Time: Sunderland 1 Portsmouth 0

Adams' half-time talk must have influenced Nadir Belhadj, as the on-loan wing back hit a thundering 25-yard shot past the Black Cats keeper following Niko Kranjcar's pass, to make the scores level only six minutes after the break. Belhadj's goal was his first for Pompey, and providing we can secure a permanent deal for the Algerian, it will be the first of many.

Cisse nearly restored the lead a couple of times for the home side, but David James was on hand to keep the ball out of the net, with Cisse also having a goal rightly disallowed after moving into an offside position.

Reid also went close for Sunderland but could only place the ball into James' hands.

Nwankwo Kanu came on for Peter Crouch in the latter stages of the match, as the Nigerian substitute's well worked play with Kranjcar, but Pompey's goalscorer Belhadj wasted the opportunity as his cross swung out of play before it could meet a blue shirt in the box.

Pompey were pushing forward and successive attacks allowed England and Pompey right back Glen Johnson to run into the box, before Pompey fans' number one enemy El-Hadj Diouf brought down Johnson for a penalty.

Defoe calmly slotted the ball past Fulop to secure all three points in injury time.

Referee Steve Bennett blew the whistle shortly after as Pompey celebrated their first win under Tony Adams.