Centre-back in at the deep end unless last resort

really composed, a really good personality, but I just feel that he is not quite physically ready for the Championship at this moment,” said Mowbray.

“It’s a really tough, rough, place and a tough position to try and learn your job, which is why generally I send young centre-halves out on loan and they come back much more ready having played 50 or 60 games. I said to Joe that we’d talk about it in the summer, he’ll come and do pre-season and we’ll see where we are: whether he is in the team, not in the team, or how close he is. It might be an option for us somewhere down the line [to go out on loan] to get him some games.

“If he has to be involved and play [this season], I will put him in. I just feel that right in the heart of your defence it is a big ask because one mistake, somebody overpowering you, then you get judged.

“What I don’t like to do is expose them too young, before I think they are ready, and people make their minds up about them and say ‘they’re not good enough, they’re not strong enough, every time he plays we get beat.’ You have to be careful with young defenders and young goalkeepers. They have to be ready, and when they are ready you have to trust them and put them in.

“Until you put them in, you generally don’t know of course – until Joe has the opportunity to start a game or plays or comes on as he has done once or twice for us, he has to be ready to do the job and I wouldn’t worry one iota when he has the ball or we’re in possession. My fear is that he’s not Danny Batth or Dan Ballard who are powerhouses really, he’s a spindly kid who has a wand of a left foot.

“We’ll see. If he has to play, we’ll put him in.”

Sunderland will have Dennis Cirkin available again after he sat out the Huddersfield game due to suspension and he has played as the left-sided centre-back as part of a back three on occasion this season. If Mowbray went down that route, it could see O’nien playing in the middle of the three with Trai Hume on the right side.