The appealing Kevin Nolan

Say what you like about Kevin Nolan, but watching the highlights of the Sunderland game on Match of the Day, you do realise how good he is at appealing to referees. First he was held back by Larrsson while going for Matt Jarvis's cross. After this happened he sank to his knees, raised his arms to the sky King Lear-style and then theatrically pummelled the turf with his fists.

In the second half he was held back by Vergini only to be incorrectly given offside because the ball had came off O'Shea. Nolan adopted the shocked expression of a man whose house had just been razed by rampaging Vandals and Visigoths, running to the referee, imploring for justice with his hands and declaring "it came off him!" When our Kevin retires you do feel he might have a career in the dramatic arts ahead of him.