Paolo Di Canio: "I didn't have any doubt about John O'Shea.
"In a natural way in the morning he's first out for the warm-up and he's always top of the group, always trying to encourage others, which is important, always on his toes.
"Sometimes when I talk about tactical situations I see the young players just shut their mouths and look to the sky. John O'Shea always listens.
"You can be the best manager you can but if you have one or two players - I don't say 11 - that deliver the same message it's crucial because the others are maybe going to forget.
"He's positive and intelligent.
"It's easy for a few of them (Sunderland players, to be as professional as Di Canio would like), but for the others it is still difficult. It is very heavy for some of them.
"For me it is normal, for John O'Shea it is normal because he comes from an environment where the people used to throw boots in people's face and the player would say, 'Thanks, the best manager in the world, thanks Sir Alex (Ferguson),' if they did something wrong.
"Forget the goal (against Stoke), which was really important for us it's obvious, my defenders have to defend well. For 75 minutes they did an amazing job. Him (O'Shea) and Carlos (Cuellar) were one of the main parts in that."