Stephane Sessegnon scored with a minute left Saturday to give Sunderland a 2-2 Premier League draw against Aston Villa and overshadow the return of England striker Darren Bent to his former club.
Benin international Sessegnon stooped to head in Sebastian Larsson's free kick just four minutes after Villa defender Richard Dunne had seemed to have clinched victory with a header of his own.
Sunderland's first equalizer had come in the 38th when Connor Wickham canceled out Stilyan Petrov's stunning 20th-minute opener.
Bent was jeered throughout on his first return to Wearside since leaving in January. He missed a good chance in the 70th when he shot straight at substitute goalkeeper Kieran Westwood.
Bent was virtually a bystander for much of the early action with the main threat coming from Sunderland's Larsson, who fired in a pair of dangerous free kicks.
But Bent prodded wide under pressure from Kieran Richardson from a cross by Emile Heskey and Villa snatched the lead when Petrov was fed by Alan Hutton and lashed a long-range shot for only his sixth goal in 167 appearances for the Midlands club.
Wickham had already had a header blocked when he scored with a left-foot shot from 10 meters (yards).
The teams remained mid-table, separated by just a point.
