Goals from John Mensah and Jordan Henderson pulled Sunderland level but Craig Bellamy put City ahead again.
Sunderland had a spell of possession after the break following the introduction of Jordan Henderson and Ahmad Elmohamady.
Jordan Henderson and Daniel Sturridge both bagged braces while Daniel Agger and Fabio Borini also got on the scoresheet.
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Welbeck, Bent, Jordan Henderson and Gyan all spurned at least two opportunities apiece as the hosts dominated possession and territory.
Gabriel Torje hit the post for the visitors before Jordan Henderson put England ahead with an impressively taken 25-yard volley.
Luiz Suarez scored his 15th league goal of the season to put Liverpool 2-0 up at halftime following Jordan Henderson's 26th-minute opener.
Up to that point, Sunderland had only managed a couple of curling efforts from Malbranque and Jordan Henderson that failed to trouble keeper Pepe Reina.
The Hammers lost 1-0 as a result of Jordan Henderson's strike, leaving them with 12 points from 16 games, three points behind Fulham in 17th.
Jordan Henderson ran clear down the right and crossed for Campbell to slide in and finish allowing the home fans a huge collective sigh of relief.
Ranson also revealed that the club had an option to buy England midfielder Jordan Henderson and Chelsea midfielder Jack Cork following successful loan spells at the Ricoh Arena.
Johan Djourou needed to be alert to clear a low Jordan Henderson cross with Asamoah Gyan ready to pounce, while Phil Bardsley drilled narrowly wide from 20 yards.
Andre Ooijer, Stephen Warnock, Keith Andrews, Jason Roberts and Pedersen also returned to the side, while Sunderland manager Roy Keane settled for bringing in Teemu Tainio to replace Jordan Henderson in midfield.
There seemed to be little on when a Jordan Henderson clearance fell to Richardson just inside his own half, but the former Manchester United man spotted Campbell's run, splitting the Villa defence with a prodded through-ball.
With the visitors unable to find any foothold in the game, Jordan Henderson jinked through into the area and fell under a challenge from Benoit Assou-Ekotto but the penalty shouts were waved away by referee Lee Mason.
Newcastle's Carroll was one of four new picks for Fabio Capello's squad, along with Cardiff striker Jay Bothroyd, Manchester United defender Chris Smalling and Sunderland midfielder Jordan Henderson, who was instrumental as the Black Cats won at Chelsea.
Amid the Reds onslaught, Sunderland managed only a single attempt on goal in the first half, an innocent Jordan Henderson shot flying harmlessly wide, and it was five minutes into the first half before the visitors forced their first corner.
There are a host of reasons for this, from the mismanagement of Liverpool's transfer policy in recent years players like Jordan Henderson, Stewart Downing, and Andy Carroll were all signed for fees well above market value to the progress of Tottenham under Harry Redknapp and, this season, Villas-Boas.
The experiment is still a work in progress, but a mixture of youth and experience came up trumps on Sunday as 22-year-old midfielder Jordan Henderson and veteran captain Steven Gerrard -- with a 60th-minute penalty after Luis Suarez was fouled -- replied with the goals that lifted seventh-placed Liverpool to within five points of European qualification.
Scott Donald, Jordan Tansey and Matt Diskin also went over for Leeds, with Jason Demetriou, Kevin Henderson and Luke George responding for Wakefield.
For relegated Watford , Jordan Stewart is chosen ahead of Chris Powell at left-back, with Will Hoskins preferred to Darius Henderson in attack and Adrian Mariappa to Cedric Avinel in defence.
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