Newcastle 1 Sunderland 1: Defoe and Mitrovic with the goals but who scooped man of the match?

The Tyne-Wear derby finished all square with Aleksandar Mitrovic's late header cancelling out Jermain Defoe's first half volley.
Yann M'Vila clears off the line at St James's ParkYann M'Vila clears off the line at St James's Park
Yann M'Vila clears off the line at St James's Park

The game finished all square at St James's Park, with Sam Allardyce and Rafa Benitez having to make do with a point.

Richard Mennear gives his player ratings below:

Sunderland (4-1-4-1)

Vito Mannone: Comfortable first half with two routine saves. More involved second half as Newcastle pressed forward, could do little with the goal.....6

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DeAndre Yedlin: Covered well, denying Sissoko early on. Linked up well with Borini and put a shift in. One of his brighter performances......6

Younes Kaboul (C): Named ahead of John O'Shea and didn't disappoint. Was forced off with a calf injury though and Sunderland suffered......7

Lamine Kone: Saw a free header fly over the crossbar. Dominated Mitrovic in the first half....7

Patrick van Aanholt: Had a fierce attempt well-saved by Elliot. Provided support and pace down the left flank.....6

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Jan Kirchhoff: Usual commanding performance from Kirchhoff, a superb January signing. Worryingly can't last a game though. MOM....8

Jack Rodwell: Saw a strong header saved. Played a great ball to Defoe but he couldn't take advantage. Did well in the centre, committed...7

Yann M'Vila: Sunderland won the midfield battle in the first half, with M'Vila winning first and second balls. Cleared off the line just after break.....7

Wahbi Khazri: Improved set piece delivery as game wore on but this was one of his quieter games. Made little impact. Subbed midway through second half.....5

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Fabio Borini: Worked really hard, caused Colback a lot of problems. Defoe's opener came from his fierce attempt on goal.....7

Jermain Defoe: Skewed a shot over the bar from close range before shooting wide from close range but scored just before the break with a well-taken volley.....7

Subs:

John O'Shea (for Kaboul, 72): Sunderland were sitting too deep even before O'Shea came on...5

Dame N'Doye (for Khazri, 75): Poor sub appearance by N'Doye. At fault for Newcastle equaliser...5

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Lee Cattermole (for Kirchhoff, 83): Added some bite to midfield....5

Subs Not Used: Pickford, Jones, Lens, Toivonen.

Booked: Mannone (90, timewasting)

Goals: Defoe (44)

Newcastle (4-2-3-1):

Rob Elliot: Strong hand to deny Jack Rodwell in early stages. Made a good save in build-up to Defoe's opener.....6

Daryl Janmaat: First 10-minutes aside, didn't get forward as often as Benitez would have liked. Booked and was taken off.....5

Jamaal Lascelles: Steady at the back for Newcastle, improved second half....6

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Chancel Mbemba: Went on one mazy run which saw him blast a shot well side. No surprise he won the aerial battle against Defoe. Did well on his return.......7

Jack Colback: Gave away too many cheap free-kicks at left-back. Booked and now faces two-game ban. Poor overall.....5

Jonjo Shelvey (C): Curled a free-kick wide on the half-hour mark. Sat deep for Newcastle and struggled to dictate play.....6

Moussa Sissoko: One counter-attack in the first-half side, Sissoko was woeful down the left flank. Really poor and no surprise fans on his back. Improved late on....5

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Georginio Wijnaldum: Looked unsure where he was supposed to be playing. Had very little impact on the game until he produced a superb cross for Mitrovic's equaliser.....6

Andros Townsend: Caused Sunderland problems with his crossing, forced Mannone into a save. MOM.....7

Ayoze Perez: Had little impact first half and looked lost at times. Saw his shot cleared off the line just after the re-start.....6

Aleksandar Mitrovic: Blasted high over the bar from close range 7 minutes in. Flattered to deceive first half but scored the equaliser with a powering header....7

Subs:

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Siem De Jong (for Colback, 62): Newcastle looked more of a threat when he came on. 6

Vurnon Anita (for Janmaat, 72): Played right back, steady. 6

Papiss Cisse (for Townsend, 76): Helped Newcastle come back into the game.6

Subs Not Used: Darlow, Saivet, Taylor, Riviere.

Booked: Colback (14, foul), Janmaat (shirt-pull, 36), Shelvey (52, foul).

Goals: Mitrovic (83)

Referee: Martin Atkinson (Bradford) Kept the game flowing, got the big decisions correct....6/10

Attendance: 52,311