“I didn’t enjoy it at all” – Portsmouth striker speaks out about time at Sunderland

Portsmouth attacker Aiden O’Brien has called his time at Sunderland “absolutely abysmal” in conversation with Portsmouth-based outlet, The News.

The 28-year-old, who spent 18 months with the Black Cats, joined Pompey in January and has gone on to feature nine times in the league since. 

After progressing through the youth ranks at Millwall, O’Brien featured over 200 times for the Lions in the senior set up, arriving at The Stadium of Light in July 2020. 

Speaking to The News about his 18-month spell with the Black Cats and the difference between his time in the north east and now at Portsmouth, O’Brien said: “(The difference is) I’m playing. I’m actually playing and I’m on the pitch. There were times at Sunderland where I would score a hat-trick and in the next game, I would be on the bench.

“I would then be on the bench the next three games. My time at Sunderland was absolutely abysmal, I didn’t enjoy it at all.

“It started well, and it just ended so badly. I just needed to get out of there because I was kind of rotting away. The manager here knows that, and he took me on, which I’m thankful for.”

The verdict 

After a spell of his career he clearly did not enjoy, it is good to see O’Brien thriving elsewhere.

The 28-year-old has proven to be a real asset for Cowley’s side, repaying the faith that the former Huddersfield Town boss has in him. 

It appears that Cowley has played a big role in O’Brien enjoying his football once again and the forward could play an integral role next season with promotion to the Championship a certain objective. 

Cowley has a lot of strong attacking options at his disposal, and whilst that could change in the summer, it is definitely a good thing to have those levels of competition. 

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