'Lots of ups and downs': In-form Leeds star pushes claims for England recall in 1-1 draw against Sunderland

With each goal in his career-best scoring run, Dominic Calvert-Lewin is advancing his claims for a recall to the England squad ahead of the World Cup.

The striker netted for the sixth straight game to earn Leeds a 1-1 draw at Sunderland, which missed a chance to climb to fifth place in the Premier League on Sunday.

By staying injury-free and being on the hottest streak as a professional, Calvert-Lewin is making a convincing case to be Harry Kane's back-up for England for the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico in the middle of 2026.

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His equaliser at the Stadium of Light came in the 47th minute and was a trademark close-range, one-touch finish, turning in a cross from U.S. forward Brenden Aaronson.

Calvert-Lewin has eight goals in the league, more than any other English player.

“I am feeling good, feeling fit, strong and enjoying playing with the lads,” he said.

“Lots of ups, lots of downs, you know, tests of character and I have hung in there and kept going and kept pushing back myself, and here I am now.”

Simon Adingra gave Sunderland the lead in the 28th minute by running onto a clever pass behind the full back by Granit Xhaka and bending a shot inside the far post.

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It was a match between two promoted teams, with seventh-place Sunderland faring the better so far this season.

Leeds are now on a five-match unbeaten run and has moved seven points clear of the relegation zone.

In the other game on Monday morning (AEDT), Tottenham picked up a second win in nine league games by beating Crystal Palace 1-0 away.

Archie Gray's first-half header was enough for the Spurs and eased some of the pressure on manager Thomas Frank and lifted the team to 11th.

Tottenham are now just four points off the fifth-placed Chelsea in a mid-table logjam.

Palace have lost three league games in a row and might be struggling to deal with an increased fixture load brought about by its involvement in the UEFA Conference League.