Boro have won eight of their 11 league games since they appointed Michael Carrick as their new head coach back in October, a run which has seen them climb to fourth in the table.
Despite a 3-1 defeat against Swansea last time out, Sunderland also recorded some strong results over the festive period and are just three points off the play-off places.
Ahead of the match we’ve put together a combined Sunderland and Middlesbrough XI based on players’ performances this season and stats provided from Whoscored.com.
Here’s who made the cut:
Ahead of the match we’ve put together a combined Sunderland and Middlesbrough XI based on players’ performances this season and stats provided from Whoscored.com.