It was just Viduka's seventh appearance for The Magpies since joining the club on a free transfer from Middlesbrough in the summer and he is happy to be back in the side.
"It was great to come back into the team for the derby game and I felt good to be honest," Viduka told the club's official website.
"You just want to play games, but the international break is a good chance to work hard on my fitness ahead of Liverpool.
"It's been frustrating being injured this past month or so, especially because I was in decent form before the injury.
"I've scored three goals so far and I'm hoping to add to that in the next few games. >p> "December is a busy month, but we're looking forward to it and the draw at Sunderland gives us something to build on after a poor couple of results."
