Sunderland Stage Famous Newcastle Group Snapshot In the Wake of Pivotal Derby Victory.

An altered coaching staff and a largely changed squad – but those involved at Sunderland had a long memory.

Nearly two years ago, after a comprehensive Magpies victory at the Stadium of Light in an FA Cup tie, the rivals celebrated with a group photo on the pitch.

This time, the roles were turned on their head.

Nick Woltemade's unfortunate deflection proved enough to give Sunderland a historic win over their rivals in the return of the Premier League Tyne-Wear derby since 2016 – prompting the hosts to mimic Newcastle's celebratory snapshot at full-time.

“Always unpredictable, creative, adaptive,” smiled Black Cats manager Regis le Bris when questioned about who proposed the photograph.

Defender Dan Ballard, who conceded an own goal in that previous encounter, was the sole Sunderland player to be in the starting XI in both games.

He disclosed how he was eager to rectify the loss, stating: “Words can't express it. It was agonizing for the players and for the fans. We felt we had disappointed them, so we're ecstatic with this win.”

“It prepared us more for today. We came in with more quality in this team, true characters, we persevered, fought really hard and I thought we deserved the win.”

‘Rivalry games demand victory, regardless of the performance’

Occupying seventh spot Sunderland are enjoying a outstanding return to the top flight post promotion via the play-offs last season.

The Black Cats have a tally of 26 points in 16 games, their most at this stage of a Premier League campaign since 2000-01.

They are undefeated in the league at the Stadium of Light, which boasted an incredible atmosphere for most of Sunday afternoon.

“Derbies, you have to win, it does not matter how,” said captain Granit Xhaka. “This team deserves much more – where we are in the league is remarkable and we're working really hard.”

Sunderland are also undefeated in their last 10 league games against Newcastle, their best-ever streak without defeat against the Magpies.

Newcastle's last league win over Sunderland was over a decade ago.

Manager Regis le Bris said he was “proud and happy” with the performance.

“It was a derby and we were expected [to win] of our fans,” he added. “This win is fully merited, we were disciplined and the lads were outstanding.”

“It's fantastic for the local community, the club, the fans. We knew before it was a special game, but we have to reset quickly as we have another difficult test in Brighton in one week.”