Luke O'Nien reveals Jobe Bellingham's half-time influence during Sunderland's draw against Watford
Luke O’Nien has revealed Jobe Bellingham’s influence on the Watford game despite being injured
Sunderland club captain Luke O’Nien has revealed how injured Jobe Bellingham influenced his teammates during an appearance at half-time.
Sunderland were held to a frustrating draw against Watford on Saturday afternoon. Dennis Cirkin’s late equaliser rescued a point for Sunderland and preserved their unbeaten home record on an otherwise disappointing afternoon.
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O’Nien scored early to put his side ahead but goals from Edo Kayembe and Imran Louza either side of half time gave the visitors a shock lead. Sunderland had big chances to win it late on but couldn’t convert, dropping two points in the race for the top two.
Jobe missed the game against Watford with a minor knock and took his place in the stands to watch his teammates battle Watford in the Championship. O’Nien, however, has revealed that Jobe came into the dressing room at half-time to offer some tactical advice having watched the opening 45 from a higher vantage point.
“Listen, Jobe's a wonderful player,” O’Nien said after the game. “I'm one of his biggest fans, more than his dad. Don't tell him that. I think Jobe's wonderful. He's a wonderful addition. He even comes in at half-time to give his perspective. That's how much he's grown into the game. Even though he's not playing, he's in at half-time. We're asking for his perspective on the game because he's a leader in our team.
“It doesn't matter how old he is. We look to him for advice. We look to him to lead all the time. He's stepped into this role really well. I thought Salis did quite well coming in today. Yes, Jobe's always a big miss, but he's still part of the team. We've got players that came in and did really well today. Milan got some space towards the end, which nearly scored. He looks really dangerous. We've just got to keep building.”
Luke O’Nien reacts to his opening goal during Sunderland vs Watford
When asked what Jobe had said in the dressing room, O’Nien said: “I connect to Jobe. He sits higher up, so he gets to see the game from a different perspective. Just little things on how we can shift the momentum, how he sees the game, that we need to change. It's always important. You want to get different perspectives.
“Sometimes when we're in the game, it's really hard to see. So it's just that connection, seeing what he thinks. Then going, yeah, it could potentially work. But yeah, looking forward to getting him back when we get him back.”
Asked about his opening goal, O’Nien responded: “It was about as classy as my goals get. Yeah, I couldn't really miss, you know, credits. I'd said it downstairs, Proc, it's exactly kind of how he's worked it, told me where to be. Trai (Hume) put it on the plate and I was just, you know, the cherry on top. I get the credit for it. But, you know, Proc and Trey did the work and I just did my usual thing, tackle it in and run off to try and celebrate.”