Portsmouth should forget Sunderland beef and seal much-needed late January transfer | OneFootball

Luke O’Nien would be a really shrewd late addition for Pompey in the January Transfer Window

It's fair to say that Portsmouth are a little thin on the ground at the moment when it comes to defensive options.

Injuries to the likes of Conor Shaughnessy and Hayden Matthews left Pompey fielding a back four of Ibane Bowat, Zak Swanson, Terry Devlin and Connor Ogilvie for the South Coast Derby at the weekend - with Bowat the only recognised centre-back in that defensive line.

Boss John Mousinho has certainly hinted that reinforcements will be made ahead of next Monday's 7pm UK transfer deadline. The Blues have already brought in Millenic Alli on loan from Luton Town, Ebou Adams from Derby County and Keshi Anderson upon his departure from Birmingham City.

And, Pompey should look to add to that core of Championship experience by signing a man who's been one of the most recognisable faces in the division in the last couple of years.

Portsmouth should be looking to sign Luke O'Nien on loan

Now, there have been a few links circulating on social media that Portsmouth are turning their attention to Sunderland defender Luke O'Nien.

Whilst there has been no verified confirmation from journalists close to either Pompey or the Black Cats, this deal would certainly make sense for all parties.

Firstly, Pompey have their current aforementioned defensive crisis. With Shaughnessy still out for a period, and Matthews no closer to a return, Pompey desperately need some more bodies at the back - ideally ahead of what feels like a huge relegation six-pointer at home to West Bromwich Albion on Saturday afternoon.

Also, O'Nien adds versatility - the like of which Pompey could certainly do with. He has played all across the backline during his time at the Stadium of Light, where he was one of the first signings made by Jack Ross when they dropped into League One in the summer of 2018.

And he has been one of the key factors to Sunderland's rise back up through the leagues. This looks set to be the first season in which he won't play over 35 games for the Black Cats since arriving from Adams Park in the summer of 2018.

And, furthermore, he played in 49 games last season under Regis Le Bris in their promotion-winning campaign - which is further showcasing that he would be an ideal addition for Pompey.

If we take a deep dive into his stats from last season, he ranked in the top percentile among other divisional centre-backs for long balls played, which could fit in well with Pompey as they do often like to attack with pace and directly.

Whilst he is also very proficient at doing the 'dirty work', something essential for a side scrapping towards the bottom end of the division - as his stats for blocked shots, interceptions and tackles all ranked highly for other Championship centre-backs last season.

The former Watford, Wealdstone and Wycombe Wanderers defender has also struggled for game time upon the Black Cats' return to the Premier League - which may make the appeal of regular game time too good for the 31-year-old to turn down.

He has only made four top division appearances this season, and they have all been cameos of under 10 minutes. However, he did play all 120 minutes at centre-back next to Nordi Mukiele in their FA Cup third round victory at Everton earlier this month.

It is also worth noting that O'Nien has recently said in an interview that he is happy at Sunderland despite his lack of playing time - though with Dan Neil having left to join Ipswich Town on loan earlier this week, then O'Nien might also be allured by the prospect of regular first-team football.

O'Nien would certainly be a popular signing with Pompey fans - despite a bit of history between him and the Fratton Park faithful.

In the 2018/19 season, Pompey and Sunderland sensationally met four times from March 31st to the end of the season, as the Blues won a memorable EFL Trophy final, but the Black Cats had the last laugh in the play-offs, with a league draw sandwiched in between.

And the second leg of that play-off semi-final was certainly a memorable one for O'Nien, as he was 'punched and kicked' by a fan in the crowd after tumbling over the advertising hoardings.

This added to what was an already tense and hostile 'rivalry' between the two clubs who geographically couldn't really be further away from each other, certainly following other incidents during both of their spells in League One.

In the away fixture at the Stadium of Light in April 2019, a Pompey supporter was banned for three years after throwing a flare at the Sunderland fans below them.

And, in 2021, then-Mackems gaffer Lee Johnson was seething after the game at Fratton Park was not abandoned despite the pitch being drenched in puddles. They lost 4-0.

However, there's certainly a lot of goodwill for him at Fratton Park, as he declined to press further charges against the fan - and played down the incident, stating that "when you're out there, it's two teams and fan bases going into battle".

And O'Nien certainly appears, from the outside looking in, like exactly the sort of character that you would want around the training ground in a relegation fight - as this social media post paying tribute to Dan Neil leaving proves.

Whilst a deal for him may be semi-unrealistic, it would certainly be something of a dream signing for John Mousinho's side as they look to stay in the second tier.