Bournemouth extended their unbeaten Premier League run to eight games after a 1-1 draw with Sunderland AFC at the Vitality Stadium, leaving the Cherries in eighth place.

Sunderland started strongly, with Noah Sadiki forcing an early save from Dorde Petrovic, and the Black Cats had a penalty appeal denied shortly afterward. Bournemouth gradually settled, though, and Eli Junior Kroupi wasted a chance inside the first 12 minutes when he dragged a shot wide from the box.

The hosts eventually broke the deadlock. A slick team move saw Habib Diarra’s shot parried by Petrovic, only for the rebound to fall to Eliezer Mayenda, who calmly slotted home to score his first Premier League goal since the opening day of the season.

Bournemouth pressed for an equaliser, and Robin Roefs was called into action with a brilliant double save to keep Sunderland ahead. Marcus Tavernier’s free-kick also forced Roefs into another vital stop before halftime.

The second half saw Sunderland almost double their lead inside two minutes, as Diarra broke free of the Bournemouth defence, but his finish lacked precision, allowing Petrovic to make a key block. That miss proved costly, as substitute Evanilson met a perfect cross from Tavernier to head home an equaliser in the 64th minute, setting up a tense final quarter.

Both sides had chances late on, including a Sunderland goal in the final 10 minutes that was ruled out for offside. The 1-1 draw reflected a hard-fought contest, with a point apiece considered a fair outcome.

Bournemouth will aim to continue their push for European qualification when they host Brentford FC on Tuesday, while Sunderland, now 11th in the table, travel to face Leeds United at Elland Road the same night.