Sunderland club captain Luke O’Nien has given his honest thoughts on the disappointing draw to Watford.
At the weekend, the Black Cats were unable to wrap up all three points against an out-of-form Watford team as Tom Cleverley’s side held Sunderland to a 2-2 draw.
Once again, the Stadium of Light was the stage for yet another overly-defensive performance by Regis Le Bris’ side, with the French boss once again opting for Salis Abdul Samed as a third central-midfielder, leaving Wilson Isidor as the sole striker as a result.
After what was a disappointing afternoon on Wearside against Watford, Sunderland club captain Luke O’Nien was questioned over what went wrong for the Black Cats in the stalemate.
Sunderland star Luke O’Nien questions Black Cats ‘press’ in Watford draw
The Black Cats were on course for defeat at home to Watford, however, Dennis Cirkin was able to pop up in the dying embers to notch a goal to level up the game.
The game saw Sunderland get another point on the board, but it felt like two dropped, despite their late goal to level up the tie, and Sunderland star O’Nien has revealed exactly what he thinks that his side struggled at.
Per Sunderland Echo, O’Nien said: “This season we’re building, getting better and moving forward. We always look to win, we set up to win not to not lose. We didn’t quite get the press right in the first half but there are good things to learn.
“There’s good things to learn from the game, how do we get more pressure on the ball, we’ll use it to our benefit.
“Every game brings a different test and they all have the quality. You have to earn every single point. We nearly won it towards the end today but couldn’t quite do enough. The nice thing for us as a group and club is we go into every game expecting to win.”
Regis Le Bris must change up home tactics following recent stalemates
Sunderland’s last two home games have seen the Black Cats held to 2-2 draws against Watford and Plymouth Argyle, and admittedly, they are two points that Le Bris’ side arguably didn’t deserve after being outplayed for large periods against the two sides.
As a result, Sunderland boss Le Bris must be looking towards how he can improve upon results at the Stadium of Light, and it has to come from the lack of an attacking shape that he has deployed in recent weeks.
For example, Salis Abdul Samed, whilst he undoubtedly has his own qualities, they simply lie in sitting back and soaking in the pressure, something that could be beneficial against top sides, but not Plymouth and Watford.
This is where the lack of pressing comes from as well. The decision to bring on Eliezer Mayenda was the game changer against Watford, as they were immediately on the back-foot once the Spaniard entered the frey, which shows that this attacking nature must be implemented by Le Bris from the off.