After the match Fulham boss Roy Hodgson compared Zamora to Emile Heskey and put him forward as a possible World Cup candidate after the striker silenced his critics with the winner.
"Maybe he reads too many of these blogs that people write in to," said Hodgson. "Our fans in the Hammersmith end actually constantly chant his name. But these people who write into the club's blogs, they're the real experts and they want something that he's not been able to give them - 30 goals a year. But he has been a key player for us."
Hodgson added: "Heskey is a very powerful player, a very willing player and a hard working player. Bobby is more technical.
"It was quite interesting being on a panel with Terry Venables the other day, discussing World Cup squads. He's got experience of that from Euro 96 and me from the World Cup.
"You could also make a case for one or two more unusual selections, players who maybe have something a little bit extra. He was talking about Ledley King.
"If you perpetuated that argument, you might come up with an argument for someone like a Bobby Zamora, the type of player who we don't have too many like in the English Premiership."
Black Cats boss Steve Bruce was upset with his side's first-half performance. "It was disappointing," he said. "In the second half, we had a response. But the first half was not good enough. We've got a right to be disappointed.
"We've got to do something away from home to get this monkey off our backs. But you won't win a game in the Premier League if you play like we did in the first half.
"I don't remember a side this Jekyll and Hyde, and it's pretty alarming. I'll have to do something about it. We had thousands here, and thousands at Wigan, and we're not doing enough."