'Massive honour' - Dan Neil's verdict on Sunderland captaincy that supporters will love
Dan Neil was once again asked about captaining his boyhood club ahead of the Watford game
Sunderland talent Dan Neil says it is a “massive honour” to captain his boyhood club.
The homegrown midfielder was named Sunderland’s team captain for the season by new head coach Régis Le Bris last summer. Luke O’Nien was handed a role as club captain while several squad members were also included in the Black Cats senior leadership group.
However, the 23-year-old was keen to point towards the effort of his teammates and their collective leadership qualities rather than concentrating on his own role when asked about the captaincy by Sky Sports ahead of the game against Watford last weekend..
“It's obviously a massive honour to wear the armband week in, week out,” Neil told Sky Sports ahead of the game against Watford in the Championship. “I've dreamed of that since I was a little kid, growing up supporting the club, but I've said it numerous times, it's not just about me, kind of wearing the armband and leading the team. I think we've got a really good leadership group here.
“We've got lads that lead in their different ways. It's the third year in the championship for a lot of the lads, and I think you can see their own leadership qualities kind of growing and influencing the team. Obviously, I'm the lucky one that gets to wear the armband, but there's a lot more that goes behind the scenes.”
What else has Dan Neil said about the captaincy at Sunderland recently?
Asked about the early pressures of his captaincy and what has changed, Neil told The Echo after the Middlesbrough game: “To be honest, I think I've probably done it by not thinking about it as much. When asked if Neil had been thinking about the role a little too much previously, he said: “Yeah, maybe. I think I spoke to Proc (Michael Proctor) about it and he said a good thing. He said we picked you to be captain because of what you do naturally.
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“So stop thinking about it. That was the one bit of advice that kind of got us back to not thinking about it. I just try to do things naturally. I'm not a massive shout-run baller. I look at the game in a different way. There's other lads on the team that do that. I've said in many interviews that it's not just about me being captain.
“We've got a really good leadership group and we've got lads that are growing into leaders every single week. And it's about all of us coming together and leading the team,” Neil concluded after Sunderland’s win against Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium on Monday evening.
Sunderland are next in action against Luton Town in the Championship at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday evening with Le Bris’ side hoping to bounce back from Saturday’s disappointing 2-2 draw against Watford.