Sunderland had gone ahead a minute before halftime when Jermain Defoe volleyed in his 12th goal of the season and they held out under plenty of Newcastle second-half pressure, even clearing off the line through Yann M'Vila soon after the break.
Yet the visitors' season-long inability to finish off the job when a win beckoned haunted them once more when Wijnaldum's excellent run and cross to put in Mitrovic ensured that they failed to keep a clean sheet for their 18th successive game.
Billed as one of the most important of the 156 Tyne-Wear derbies with relegation this season expected to cost 100 million pounds, the draw pleased neither Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce nor his old sparring partner, Newcastle's new boss Rafa Benitez, with both sides still left in the relegation zone.
"If we don't start getting these clean sheets it's going to be a massive problem," Allardyce told Sky Sports. "Sadly, we didn't get the second goal and we conceded late on again. We had the chances to put the game to bed, but missed them.
"Second half, I don't know why we sat in and let Newcastle come at us. We should have won this one. We need four wins from the last eight, so it's now must-win rather than draw."
Still, though, Defoe was adamant that the result, which leaves Sunderland one point and one place clear of 19th-placed Newcastle, would help his side to avoid the drop even though he too was convinced they should have taken all three points.
"Time is running out but I'm sure we will be fine," Defoe said.
(Reporting by Ian Chadband; editing by Toby Davis and Clare Fallon)
Share
