Sunderland's delightful double praised (From The Northern Echo)

Sunderland's delightful double praised

8:00am Saturday 4th February 2012 in Sport By Paul Fraser, Chief Football Writer

HE may have known very little about James McClean or Stephane Sessegnon before taking over, but now Martin O'Neill thinks Sunderland have two bags of tricks more than capable of starring on the Premier League and world stage.

Since taking over from Steve Bruce at the Stadium of Light, the Black Cats have climbed up to eighth in the table and boast the best form from the last nine games than any other team in the top-flight.

And while the whole team's performance levels have stepped up significantly since he accepted the job in early December, there have also been a number of individuals that have regularly hogged the limelight.

Lee Cattermole, who could be out for weeks with a hamstring tear, has been one of those to have recaptured his best, while defensively they have kept six clean sheets along the way.

But going forward the two players to have caught the imagination of Sunderland fans in the last two months have been McClean and Sessegnon. While the man leading the line might have changed quite often, those two - along with Seb Larsson - have remained a constant part of the success.

McClean's rise to prominence has been spectacular. After a couple of fleeting cameo appearances as a substitute, he has caused all sorts of problems for defences since making his full debut in the New Year's Day win over Manchester City.

And while Republic of Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni has indicated an unwillingness to take the 23-year-old to the European Championships next summer, O'Neill is urging the Italian to have a rethink.

O'Neill, aware the Irish scouting team watched the winger in action at Chelsea last month, said: "James's more than capable of going, I don't know Trapattoni and haven't spoken to him at all. I've got great regard for what he's done during his career and he'll want to stay pretty loyal to those who've got him there through thick and thin.

"Somebody fresh wanting to get in might be difficult. Could he go there on merit? Absolutely. I don't see any reason why not. I think they (Irish coaches) have been to watch him.

"Hopefully at this minute he's making such an impact he'll be watched by someone in the Ireland camp, even if it's not Trapattoni. They couldn't fail to be impressed by him."

Peterborough United's interest in McClean before his move to Sunderland last summer for £350,000 was well-documented, but O'Neill has since been told there were a few more parties that claim to have been interested.

"He's a hero back in Derry. He only had to make his debut

to be that," said O'Neill, from Derry himself. "It's great we can find a player in the game that's not cost millions.

"The number of clubs in quick succession we've been to this season who've said they were close to signing him … Peterborough we knew about and there were a number of others. They were all saying the same thing. Well you didn't! We got him and we're really pleased we did."

McClean will be on the left once again for Sunderland at the Britannia Stadium this afternoon, where he will be looking to supply the service to the strikeforce.

And whether or not O'Neill decides to rest Fraizer Campbell and play Connor Wickham, McClean does know one forward that will be playing.

Sessegnon has found the net four times since O'Neill took over, but his overall play has often been exceptional, which is something not lost on his latest boss - even if he has trouble communicating with the Benin international.

O'Neill said: "His English is better than my French! I've communicated with him, I've dug my dictionary from my old French O-level, checked a couple of words, and written them down. It said: 'you have not paid your fine' (for being late).

"I had to go to the dictionary to find the word fine. But in the end I told him in English and he understood. I speak to him in English but in a sort of South Korean accent. It was the only time Ji (Dong-Won) understood me! Oh dear."

Aside from the language barrier, Sessegnon's quality with the ball is not in any question at all. "He's a real gem of a player, better than I could have imagined," said O'Neill.

"He just needs to play and the goal at QPR before Christmas gave him a real lift because he was maybe aware he'd not scored enough goals.

"He's been brilliant with great control of the ball he's strong and I've been very impressed with him. He has so many different aspects to his game. He nutmegged the fella from about five yards in midweek, dear me!"

It is the performances of his players that have helped O'Neill to enjoy the job from the start. "It could not have gone any better, seriously," he said.

But having been out of work for 18 months before accepting to return, the former Aston Villa manager admits he has quickly been reminded about the stresses of the game.

"It's all consuming. You're in training early and it's really great. At the minute there's no distractions and I couldn't be more pleased," he said.

"I once said jokingly that I hadn't enjoyed this job for 20 years. There's an element of truth in that because you get very concerned about the games. It's a fantastic life from Monday to Friday but it's the games that concern me, and that's called my job."