Romaine Mundle makes "heated" statement in Luton v Sunderland aftermath | OneFootball

The winger provided the winning goal in the intense battle between the two teams.

The battle between Luton Town and Sunderland on Wednesday night was a "heated" one, according to match-winner Romaine Mundle.

The winger was the one that secured the visitors all three points with his curling effort in the second half, but there was plenty of action that preceded and succeeded his goal.

It was a tense affair throughout with chances coming at either end - Luton had the edge in the game, though. Despite this, they walked away with zero points.

Chris Rigg opened the scoring after 55 minutes with a piece of calmness in the box to wriggle free of a couple of Luton defenders and finish well in front of the travelling supporters. Elijah Adebayo levelled things eight minutes later with his first goal of the season, before Mundle restored the Black Cats' lead in the 66th minute.

Luton will feel aggrieved that they, too, didn't score twice in the game after Carlton Morris' first-half effort was controversially ruled out for being offside - a decision that the Town manager Rob Edwards did not agree with.

And the back-and-forth nature of the game didn't stop after the final whistle. Another debated decision by the officials, this time to not give a late penalty after the ball hit Aaron Connolly's arm inside the penalty area - a decision which Edwards actually agreed with - left the Luton players even less happy.

While referee Tom Nield booked Thomas Holmes for his post-game protests, a scuffle between the two sets of players erupted. In the middle of the pushing and shoving, Sunderland captain Luke O'Nien jumped on top of the pile of players.

Romaine Mundle labels Luton v Sunderland as "heated"

The match-winner described the contest between the two teams as "heated" after the match, specifically in reference to the flare-up between the sets of players after the game had ended.

He said, via the Northern Echo: "I didn't see it. Obviously, it's a bit heated, but it's football. It happens. I was just trying to get the players away and just celebrate with the fans."

Mundle was aware of some of the 'housery' being displayed by his teammates, specifically O'Nien and Wilson Isidor - the latter of whom blew kisses to the Kenilworth Road faithful during Sunderland's celebrations.

The winger described his captain as: "crazy," and labelled the Frenchman as: "mad."

Luton victory is the sign of a promotion-winning team

If Sunderland are going to meet the high expectations that they have now set for themselves, then these sorts of performances are going to be paramount.

Luton aren't one of their current fellow contenders for promotion, but they showed on Wednesday evening that they can mix it up with the best in the division. Sunderland weren't at their best, but this group found a way to pick up the points needed. That is one of the hallmarks of potential champions.

On paper, their upcoming fixtures aren't as tough as the ones that they have just had to play, with the likes of Oxford United and Queens Park Rangers on the horizon. They just need to make sure that they are as up for those games as they were against the likes of Luton.