Sunderland vs Newcastle combined XI: Seb Larsson or Jack Colback?

RB: Daryl Janmaat (Newcastle)

Janmaat in action against Southampton.

This was a relatively simple choice. Despite his club’s below-par start to the current campaign, Janmaat is a Netherlands international and has already scored a goal and picked up an assist in eight appearances this term.

Those stats have followed on from an impressive debut season in the Premier League, where he picked up six assists in a side that struggled – especially in the first half of 2015.

While he is good going forward, if you had to pick out one criticism, then it would probably be his defensive positioning, which seems particularly out of place sometimes.

CB: Fabricio Coloccini (Newcastle)

The Argentine defender seems to struggle for consistency, but when he is on form, he is very good. Against Manchester United at Old Trafford back in August, he put in a great performance to help his team to a 0-0 draw.

He gets the nod in our team because of his experience ahead of team-mate Chancel Mbemba, who has shown glimpses of promise, but is yet to make a real impact in United’s defence.

CB: John O’Shea (Sunderland)

The Republic of Ireland international didn’t play in his side’s opening two matches of the season – 4-2 and 3-1 defeats to Leicester and Norwich respectively – and he was certainly missed.

Since then, the Black Cats have looked a little more steady at the back, aside from the second half showing at Old Trafford at the end of last month. We’re opting for experience again here.

LB: Billy Jones (Sunderland)

Billy Jones in action at Old Trafford.

This position was arguably the hardest to select from, with the Black Cats’ Patrick van Aanholt looking good going forward, but struggling defensively, while Newcastle haven’t really had a player cement the spot as their own.

So, we’ve decided to go with Billy Jones. Yes, his preferred position is on the right, but the former West Brom man is a tidy player and has been playing on the left side in recent matches – that shows the trust Sam Allardyce has in Jones’ defensive capabilities.

Midfielders…