The 25-year-old Ghana international spared Sunderland a second dose of misery at the hands of arch-rivals Newcastle on Sunday with a last-gasp equaliser which he knew little about. His strike may have proved priceless on the day, but manager Steve Bruce will hope for a lasting return for a man who cost him in excess of £13million when he arrived at the Stadium of Light from French club Rennes during the summer. Gyan latest goal was his eighth of the campaign, but just his second in 10 games, although he insists he will deal with the weight of expectation as he attempts to make his way in the English game. He said: "I like to be myself. I play my game. The price-tag, the manager just saw that in me. "He wanted to bring me at all costs to Sunderland and finally, they made a deal. "It's a challenge for me. It shows the quality they have seen in me, so I am happy to have signed. "Football is not about talking, it is demonstrated on the field. I don't believe in talking too much." There had been much talking in the run-up to Sunday's eagerly-anticipated derby encounter, particularly on Wearside in the wake of a humiliating 5-1 defeat at St James' Park on October 31. Bruce and his players alike promised they would not freeze again as they had done on Tyneside, and were daggers drawn as they planned revenge on conquerors who had celebrated too long, too hard and too soon for their liking. But where wounded fans turned up expecting shock and awe to be unleashed on the Magpies, who arrived without key men Andy Carroll, Cheik Tiote and Steven Taylor, they were bemused to find their side once again stricken with nerves and little more capable of dealing with the psychological pressure of the most intense of local rivalries. True, they too were hampered by a lengthy injury list which robbed Bruce of the likes of Michael Turner, John Mensah, Lee Cattermole, Danny Welbeck, David Meyler and Fraizer Campbell, several of whom would figure in his strongest starting XI. But only three of those men started in the 3-0 demolition of champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on November 14, and the manager was confident their understudies would deputise as ably as they had done in recent weeks. He was, however, sadly mistaken as his players were paralysed by doubt once again. Titus Bramble and Anton Ferdinand seemed incapable of shackling Shola Ameobi, while Joey Barton and Kevin Nolan dominated the midfield battle and Fabricio Coloccini and Mike Williamson were rarely troubled by Gyan and Darren Bent. After a relatively even first half during which Ameobi and Bent both passed up good chances, Nolan put the visitors ahead with a 52nd-minute back-heeled effort, and the die looked to be cast. The Black Cats were all at sea and never looked like rescuing a point until, with time and hope fast running out, Steve Harper could only parry Phil Bardsley's driven injury-time shot and the ball reared up, hit the unwitting Gyan on the chest and looped into the net. Gyan said: "In football you need some luck in a difficult game, and finally we got a goal." Further embarrassment had been avoided, if only just, and the home fans headed away at least able to comfort themselves with their club's five-point advantage over the promoted Magpies. However, once the dust has settled, Sunderland will reflect upon drastically sub-standard performances in the two games which matter more than any other to their fans. Bruce admitted: "Unfortunately, we got caught up again in the occasion of what it is. Thankfully, we will learn from it. "But when I do see the Newcastle team, I think they are better equipped in the derbies because they have got a bit more experience than we have of handling them." With disaster narrowly averted, the Black Cats will head for Blackpool next weekend on another revenge missing after passing up a host of opportunities against the Seasiders last month before losing 2-0 on their own park. Gyan said: "We were unlucky last time. We dominated the game, but all of a sudden, we lost that game."
