A lot of teams park the proverbial bus when they travel to Old Trafford. We've done this the last few visits and it has been effective - a last-minute Vidic goal resulted in a 1-0 defeat last season. Despite a lot of criticism for teams who do this, I think it's the only way some teams can get a point away from home against the 'big four'.
So, I was quite surprised but also impressed with Steve Bruce's decision to play 4-4-2 and attack a Man Utd team that doesn't seem so intimidating without Cristiano Ronaldo.
It couldn't have started any better for Sunderland when, in the seventh minute, Darren Bent found the bottom corner with a drive from the edge of the box. The expected onslaught didn't happen and Sunderland looked more than comfortable with their lead going into half-time.
Dimitar Berbatov's magnificent equalizer early in the second half and I, once again, expected Man Utd to take control of the game and go on to win it comfortably.
Sunderland didn't read the script and continued to put pressure on Man Utd. Andy Reid, who's been a revelation since getting in shape, played a tantalizing ball into the box. Kenwyne Jones leaped above the out of form Ben Foster and Sunderland took the lead once more.
With five minutes to go Kieran Richardson was sent off for kicking the ball away. He was stupid to do such a thing but I thought it was harsh. The adjudged free-kick was debatable and he did kick the ball back to where the foul occurred. However, he shouldn't have done it. If he hadn't have been sent off then we may have been able to hang on for the win.
Going into the 90th minute with a 2-1 lead, I thought we'd hold on for a famous win. However, Man Utd have a knack off scoring late goals. Patrice Evra's shot was going well wide until Anton Ferdinand's attempted block deflected into his own net.
Ferdinand's future at the club has been in question with a swap deal with Spurs' Alan Hutton very close in the last transfer window and rumours of it being reignited in January. I've been disappointed with his performances this season, however, he was solid at the back and can take confidence from his performance on Saturday.
Once Man Utd equalized for the second time they bombarded the Sunderland goal. We hung on for the draw in the end, something that annoyed Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ferguson was fuming at the four minutes of added time, claiming that it should have been more and that the referee was poor. I thought the referee favoured Man Utd, if anyone, but I am glad he didn't play any longer as there was only one team going to score once it was 2-2. We all know what happens when you keep playing until the next team scores at Old Trafford - just ask Man City fans.
I'd have taken a draw before the game but once the final whistle had blown I felt disappointed. A good sign that Sunderland are going places and we can go into our next match against Liverpool full of confidence.
Our record against the 'big four' is abysmal (2 points from the last two seasons) so I'd like to think that Bruce can change that defeatist mentality.
There was one manager who should've been pleased with the game - Fabio Capello. There was an English striker on the pitch who’s been brilliant all season. No, not Wayne Rooney but Darren Bent.
Bent hit his seventh goal of the season (possibly eight if the Premier League panel give him the fifth against Wolves) and has shown tremendous finishing and composure in front of goal.
Despite being the top English striker this season and one of the highest scorers of the Premier League in the last four seasons, he wasn't included in Capello's latest squad. Capello has stated on numerous occasions that he'll pick players on form - Michael Owen's exclusion is proof of that. Bent's form should justify his inclusion in the squad. So, why has he been overlooked?
Capello has included Aston Villa's Gabriel Agbonlahor on the basis of his goalscoring form alongside the regulars Rooney and Emile Heskey. Spurs' Peter Crouch and West Ham's Carlton Cole make up the England frontline.
Would Bent have been called up if he'd been in such a rich vein of form for his former club, Spurs? He was last called up by Capello after going through a goalscoring patch similar to his current one, so possibly.
However, I think Capello wants to show faith in the players that have got England to South Africa. He had one space to fill once Jermaine Defoe was ruled out through injury and decided to add Agbonlahor to the squad, ahead of Bent.
Although I'm sure Bent is disappointed I do think that he isn't far from an international call-up. If he keeps scoring then Capello can't ignore him for long.
The last Sunderland striker to get in the England squad was Kevin Phillips, who was given a warm welcome on his return to the Stadium of Light in the League Cup last week. If Bent can make a similar impression to Phillips' stint on Wearside then I'm sure it won't be long before he finds himself in an England squad.
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