Steve McClaren has told his Newcastle United troops to brace themselves for the tenacity of Lee Cattermole ahead of Sunday's trip to bitter North-East rivals Sunderland.

The former Middlesbrough manager knows more than most about the 27-year-old defensive midfielder, having given him his Premier League debut against the Magpies 10 years ago.

"He's done better than I thought he would do. He's done terrifically well," the ex-England boss is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News.

"We gave him his debut in a derby game and he was excellent, man of the match. To see him go on and become [that] kind of player - he's a good footballer as well - he's done very well. Very good."

McClaren's troops picked up their first win of the season by thumping Norwich City 6-2 last weekend. The bottom-of-the-table Black Cats are winless in nine league outings.