O’Nien has been a regular in Sunderland’s starting line-up this season and despite being a defensive midfielder, he has featured as a centre-back under Tony Mowbray.
He is part of a side now pushing to secure a playoff spot in the Championship, with Sunderland sitting in fifth place in the table.
O’Nien believes his experience has helped him adapt to different roles as per the requirements of the team and stated that whichever position he plays, he focuses on making the best possible decision.
The 28-year-old also insisted that there are excellent people on Mowbray’s coaching staff who help him understand his roles and revealed that he works with assistant manager Mark Venus after each game to improve his game.
“The way I break down the game, I see it as I have to go out and make decisions”, O’Nien told the Sunderland Echo.
“I think me as a younger player here would have maybe not adapted as well as I have now in some games.
“I’m not going to get it right all the time but I have really good people helping me.
“I just know that whatever position I play, the same with everybody; we just have to make the best decisions we can.
“If it goes wrong you move onto the next decision.
“I just keep trying to make better decisions for the team and when we get back to the training ground me and Veno will be watching the clips back, we talk about it as a team as well as some of the clips and how we can improve.”
The 28-year-old scored in Sunderland’s recent win over QPR, while he turned out in Saturday’s draw with Bristol City.
