Sunderland manager Roy Keane used the bulk of yesterday’s programme notes to caution against complacency. How prescient he was. Three successive victories had seemingly ensured that, barring the sort of reverse miracle that relegated Sheffield United last season, Sunderland would retain their seat at the top table for the first time since Peter Reid’s rollercoaster reign.

Just when it seemed safe to think of sun and sand, Sunderland were the victims of a callous, clinical football mugging by 11 sky blue-clad perpetrators. Surely Keane’s men will not emulate Sheffield United, but, with a visit to Newcastle on the clouding horizon, his tone afterwards was dark and stark.

“I knew this was going to happen, I could feel it in my bones,” he said with a sigh. “Everyone has been plugging into us being safe next season, so we could relax, blah, blah, blah. I’ve never heard such rubbish in all my life and I knew the other results would go against us. You could see from how we played that some people thought we could slacken off. We can’t. All the players should be disappointed, all the staff should be disappointed this afternoon.”

Manchester City were theoretically the ideal visitors. As Sunderland have waxed, City have waned. The promise of a vintage season when they took three points at Old Trafford in February has since evaporated into a collective collapse in form and the tacit but unmistakable suggestion the good work of August to Old Trafford was sufficient endeavour for a whole season. Now, according to manager Sven-Göran Eriksson, Europe is a prospect once more. “We had good spirit, we defended well,” he noted. “And, yes, we had a bit of luck too.”

In fact, for all their recent travails City were not entirely without resolve, although Craig Gordon needn’t have bothered changing out of his suit until Daniel Sturridge’s brief but electric cameo. Martin Petrov, whose recent decline is a template for his club’s slump, realised Phil Bardsley’s lack of pace meant that the full-back would stand off and allow the Bulgar to charge at him. Yet, tellingly, not only was Petrov too quick for Bardsley, but for his teammates too. Twice in the early stages, he crossed low on to the penalty spot, only to find no other sky blue shirt had reached the ‘D’.

And if the infectious joy that characterised Benjani Mwaruwari’s game at Fratton Park has been mysteriously extinguished since his move north, it was not hard to see why. Ploughing an unhappy lone furrow against Nyron Nosworthy and Jonny Evans, he repeatedly looked for support. He invariably found none.

Worse still, City’s aesthetically pleasing passing game had lost its rhythm. Stephen Ireland, Michael Johnson and Elano, hitherto exemplary practitioners of the incisive through ball, found their radar malfunctioning and their aim skew-whiff. No wonder Mwaruwari looked so disconsolate.

Initially, Sunderland’s Kenwyne Jones had struggled to thwart the attentions of Richard Dunne, a tower of defensive strength as those around him buckled. But in the 23rd minute, Jones sped past the City captain into the penalty area. City goalkeeper Joe Hart underlined his burgeoning reputation with a fearless block.

Kieran Richardson was withdrawn at half-time (“most definitely a tactical substitution; it’s just a shame you’re only allowed to make three substitutions,” noted Keane), allowing Andy Reid, whose gifts were lost in the centre of midfield, the opportunity to face Sun Jihai on Sunderland’s left. The dividends were almost instant as, showing a surprising turn of pace for one with such a low centre of gravity, Reid trundled to the byline and crossed to where Daryl Murphy lurked at the back post. Alas for the home side, Murphy blasted high and wide, but notice had been served.

Now, as the sleet descended, Sunderland flexed their muscles. Dunne’s heroic block foiled Murphy, and just as City looked about to capitulate, Eriksson himself yielded, removing Ireland from his overpopulated, underachieving midfield and introducing Sturridge as a foil for Mwaruwari, but when they did have a chance, it was gifted to them by Sunderland’s Danny Collins, who inadvertently poked the ball into the path of Johnson in the penalty area. Bardsley’s fine challenge preserved parity.

Slowly, City began to claw their way back. Excellent work from the nimble Sturridge set Petrov free in the 75th minute. Like those who had tried before him, Petrov shot high and wide, but another kind of notice had been served and when complacency allowed Sturridge to waltz into the penalty area, he was gently upended by what Eriksson agreed was Nosworthy’s minimal contact.

“I’m not complaining, but there was no contact and it wasn’t a penalty,” claimed Keane. Nosworthy was booked and, with Sturridge about to limp off, Elano marked his first contribution of the afternoon by firing the penalty past Gordon.

If Sunderland had lazily allowed themselves to fall behind, they were Stakhanovite in drawing level. Reid collected the ball on the left and crossed for Dean Whitehead to smash a glorious volley past Hart, who barely saw it, let alone moved for it.

Honour as well as parity restored and the home crowd roaring, there only seemed one team likely to triumph. Instead, the other escaped to victory. Elano elegantly threaded the ball through to Vassell (whose stock has sunk so low that he was only brought on because Sturridge was forced off), who evaded three slumbering defenders and watched gleefully as his mis-hit bobbled into goal.

“Not the greatest strike I’ve seen in my life,” admitted Eriksson with a wry smile. No matter; the points were his.

Star man: Richard Dunne (Man City)

Player ratings: Sunderland: Gordon 6, Bardsley 6, Nosworthy 6, Evans 6, Collins 6, Chopra 6 (O’Donovan 80min), Whitehead 6, Reid 7, Richardson 5 (Leadbitter ht, 5), Jones 6, Murphy 5 (Edwards 62min)
Man City: Hart 7, Sun 6, Corluka 4, Dunne 7, Ball 6, Fernandes 5, Elano 5 (Hamann 90min), Ireland 4 (Sturridge 58min 5, Vassell 82min), Johnson 5, Petrov 6, Mwaruwari 5

Yellow cards: Sunderland: Bardsley, Whitehead, Nosworthy
Man City: Fernandes, Corluka

Referee: M Riley

Attendance: 46,797