Luke O'Nien delivers strong dressing room verdict on Sunderland's disappointing defeat and recent form
Sunderland’s winless run extend on Friday night but Luke O’Nien insists the team is in a good place
Luke O’Nien urged Sunderland to use the disappointment of their late defeat to Sheffield United as they look to bring an end to their winless run next week.
O’Nien insists that the Black Cats are in a good place and not far off being a ‘really, really good side’ having impressed with large parts of their performance at Bramall Lane. A late goal from substitute from Tom Davies consigned Sunderland to their first league defeat in ten games, though they are now also winless in six.
The Black Cats are back in action on Saturday when Stoke City visit the Stadium of Light on Saturday lunchtime and the 30-year-old defender insists the team’s luck will soon turn if they keep producing a similar level of performance.
“The team is in a good place,” O’Nien said.
“We're close to being really, really good. We don't have to change too much, it's just fine details and we're just going to have to put a little more thought and care into it so we can turn these games our way.
“We know we're a good team. We deserved three points more though of course having said that, we know we have to turn these performances into wins. But the performance was there and I think it has been for the last five or six games. We know we're a good team but we've got to reference [the disappointment] of this game, training has got to have a bit of extra bite this week. We've got to win a lot more games because of this loss today, you carry these performances with you and the disappointment, hearing them celebrating... we're going to use this as a catalyst to win more games because of it.
“In the long run, consistency always wins. You stay consistent and keep doing the things that have served you well, you learn and move forward both individually and collectively.”
Chris Mepham’s red card means that O’Nien is likely to revert to his role in central defence on Saturday, with Dennis Cirkin expected to be fit for selection.