Solano leaves Black Cats out in cold

Nolberto Solano flew in from Chile to send a shiver down Sunderland’s spine at Upton Park yesterday.

His crazy in-off goal, from his first meaningful touch of the ball, was the key moment as the Hammers clinched a much-needed 3-1 win.

The goal in the 77th minute, West Ham’s second, will not even be awarded to substitute Solano – it was officially recorded as an own goal by Sunderland’s £9m goalkeeper Craig Gordon and was followed by Craig Bellamy’s clincher in injury-time.

But the Peruvian veteran will surely feel entitled to claim it after his shot beat Gordon and came back off a post before rebounding off the fallen Scotland international’s legs and rolling into the net.

West Ham manager Alan Curbishley, who raised a few eyebrows when he signed Solano on a free transfer from Newcastle last month, said: “The reason I brought him here was just for exactly what he did.

“He has a great first touch, brings other people into the game and calms us down a bit when we need it.

“He’s actually been here five weeks but four of those have been international breaks and he has only trained with us five times.

“He arrived back from Chile on Saturday morning and I thought it would be best used as a sub, but we needed a shake-up in the second half and although I got some stick for it I think I made the right changes.”

Solano, who had retired from international football after a bust-up with Peruvian officials, has returned to the South Americans’ team and played twice for his country last week.

Curbishley has taken a gamble with him to ease West Ham’s injury problems and his entry to the fray proved timely after three consecutive defeats.

But until his late intervention, arriving in a double-change with Luis Boa Morte in the 73rd minute, Sunderland had looked set to land their first away win since promotion.

They had trailed in West Ham’s wake after Carlton Cole, deputising again for injured Dean Ashton, headed his first of the campaign after nine minutes but a Kenwyne Jones header – bringing his third goal since a £5m move from Southampton – and manager Roy Keane’s half-time substitutions changed the game.

West Ham were under siege and may well have been beaten again but for Robert Green’s marvellous save to deny Grant Leadbitter, whose rifling shot was turned against a post by the keeper who admits he has fierce England ambitions.

Curbishley enthused: “It was a match-winning save if you like and sums up all that Greenie has done this season. England? He’s certainly done himself no harm.”

The Hammers manager’s concession that West Ham were a little fortunate could not brighten Keane’s gloom.

The Irishman, who has spent big money to try to lift Sunderland up among the elite, still finds only four teams below them in the table and offered no excuses.

He said: “I take my hat off to their keeper for that unbelievable save but I’m not accepting any hard luck stories.

“This was probably the best we’ve played away in the Premier League but we made sloppy mistakes and were punished for them.

“Plaudits we might get for our performances mean nothing to me. I’m here to win matches but we won’t if we keep conceding three goals.”