Sunderland earn 1-0 win over Newcastle thanks to Woltemade own goal

SUNDERLAND, England, Dec 14 : Sunderland secured a 1-0 victory over Newcastle United thanks to Nick Woltemade's unfortunate own goal on Sunday which settled the derby in dramatic fashion as the fierce North-East rivals met in the Premier League for the first time in nearly a decade.

Woltemade's header a minute into the second half proved decisive as fans who marked their calendars after Sunderland's promotion were treated to an entertaining game that lived up to its billing as one of English football's fiercest clashes.

Woltemade's mistake marked just the second Premier League own goal in the Wear-Tyne derby, extending Sunderland's unbeaten run against their rivals to 10 Premier League games.

Sunderland remain unbeaten at home this season and the win lifted Regis Le Bris's side to seventh on 26 points, two points off the top four. Newcastle slipped to 12th on 22.

"Derbies are here to win, it doesn't matter how. I know how painful it was ... losing here," Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka told Sky Sports, referring to their 3-0 defeat by Newcastle in the FA Cup third round in January 2024.

"They (the fans) motivate us, because of this, much more than before. This team deserves much more than this respect because where we are is amazing. We work very hard and deserve to be where we are."

FRANTIC FIRST HALF

A lively but scrappy first half failed to produce shots of note, though neither team shirked from physical challenges during 45 frantic minutes.

The half was marred by an injury to Newcastle defender Dan Burn, who took a knee to the chest from Sunderland's Nordi Mukiele while sliding in for a clearance.

The towering Englishman returned to the field after treatment but signalled to come off less than five minutes later, clearly in