Sunderland 2 - 1 Blackburn Rovers: Familar story as Larsson scores winner for O’Neill in dream start

The Swede curled home an injury-time free-kick off the foot of the post eight minutes after David Vaughan had dragged Sunderland back into a game they looked destined to lose with a stunning 30-yard piledriver.

Until Vaughan’s intervention, it looked as though it would be Rovers easing themselves out of Barclays Premier League relegation trouble with a second successive victory after Simon Vukcevic’s 17th-minute opener.

Steve Kean's men also had a second goal ruled out for a foul by Chris Samba on keeper Keiren Westwood, but eventually succumbed as the home side improved markedly after a poor first half.

It was just Sunderland's fourth home win in 2011 and their second over Blackburn, and just what the bulk of a crowd of 39,863 had turned up to see.

Things looked a lot less encouraging at half-time, with O’Neill’s new charges booed off. Toothless in attack and panic-stricken in defence, Sunderland squandered opportunities at one end and gifted them at the other – traits all too familiar to those who witnessed the tail end of the Steve Bruce era – and must have left the new manager in little doubt as to the task he faces.

Sunderland had started brightly enough as full-back Phil Bardsley saw a third-minute shot deflected wide by Samba and then had another effort blocked by Jason Lowe three minutes later. However, it was Rovers who took the lead and they did so with the help of some woeful defending.

Morten Gamst Pedersen’s driven free-kick was allowed to reach Samba on the edge of the penalty area and after he had controlled deftly, he drilled a deflected right-foot shot across Westwood.

The Republic of Ireland international could only palm the ball away and midfielder Vukcevic, playing in a protective face mask, headed into the empty net.

Sunderland should have been level within two minutes, but their lack of confidence in front of goal came back to haunt them.

Stephane Sessegnon got in behind full-back Gael Givet, who left the pitch five minutes later after complaining of a high heart rate, and squared the ball perfectly for Kieran Richardson.

The midfielder had just Paul Robinson to beat from six yards, but he took a heavy touch and then saw his effort smothered by the keeper. Bardsley had another shot blocked by Lowe and Sessegnon fired wide from the rebound, while Vaughan curled over from distance.

Sunderland might have found themselves further behind four minutes before the break when Westwood failed to collect another Pedersen free-kick and Scott Dann headed home, only for referee Peter Walton to rule that the keeper had been impeded by Samba.

In the second half, Sunderland went close with 54 minutes gone when Richardson's inswinging corner hit the near post with nobody close enough to capitalise on the rebound.

But Vaughan gave Sunderland hope with six minutes remaining when he ran on to a loose ball and blasted home from distance with Robinson helpless. The keeper was equally powerless to deny the home side victory when, two minutes into injury time, Larsson curled his free-kick over the wall and in off the foot of the post to snatch a much-needed three points.