Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s starling metamorphosis from an almost forgotten man to a striker on the verge of an England recall continued as his seventh goal in the last six games earned Leeds a potentially important point by the River Wear.
There were moments when Calvert-Lewin and company threatened to end Sunderland’s unbeaten Premier League record here but Régis Le Bris’s side are no pushovers these days and, by the end Daniel Farke looked happy enough with a draw.
Along the way an always compelling game provided a refreshing antidote to suggestions that the gap between the Premier League and the Championship is becoming almost insurmountable. On this exhilarating evidence this pair are not only more than good enough to stay up but the top tier would be a much poorer place without them.
The achilles injury that threatens to deprive Sunderland of Dan Ballard’s reassuring presence at centre-half for up to five weeks prompted Nordi Mukiele’s relocation from his preferred right-back role.
The former Paris Saint-Germain defender is best deployed at full-back but, not for the first time, Mukiele demonstrated that he is a far from shabby centre-back.
