Sunderland midfielder Dean Whitehead has touched on the fact that the Black Cats will need to be on top of their game for the remainder of the season to avoid being relegated.

After conjuring a draw against Middlesbrough on the weekend, Sunderland find themselves in 13th position on the league table but are just three points off the relegation zone and Whitehead knows how tight it is at the bottom of the table.

"There are plenty of teams (in trouble), probably the whole of the bottom half and maybe a couple in the top half," Whitehead said.

"It's very tight. A couple of wins and you could be out of it, but a couple of bad results and you could be struggling.

"It's a very tight league and we were delighted to get a point on Saturday. With the league being so tight, three points is vital, especially against the teams around us.

"But it was vital we went to Middlesbrough and didn't lose, and we were quite unlucky not to win in the end."