Luke O'Nien posts heartfelt farewell to departing Sunderland teammate Dennis Cirkin | OneFootball

Luke O’Nien has paid tribute to Dennis Cirkin after the left-back confirmed he will leave Sunderland this summer, posting an emotional Instagram message about their time together. He shared photos of the pair alongside his words.

Earlier this week, Cirkin confirmed he will depart when his contract expires. O’Nien and Cirkin, along with Trai Hume, Patrick Roberts, Dan Neil and Anthony Patterson, are among those to have celebrated two promotions on Wearside in recent years.

In his post, O’Nien said the past five years brought him the most enjoyment of his career, including seasons that hurt and demanded improvement, not only the successful ones.

He reflected on good and bad moments with Cirkin typically to his left, sometimes behind him helping when he made mistakes, and present in the highs and when the team needed someone to step up.

He credited Cirkin as a major architect of Sunderland’s progress into Europe and said the defender made him a better man, player and team-mate. He added that he could not thank him enough, called him family and wished him well.

Source: Sunderland Echo