O'Neill Gives Final Warning To 'Unfit' Stephane Sessegnon

Martin O'Neill has told some his biggest names that this weekend gone's 1-1 draw with Liverpool is the last time they'll be excused with a lack of match fitness, and is looking for an improvement in results and performances as the season comes to life.

In speaking with The Journal, O'Neill warned a grossly under-performing Stephane Sessegnon in particular that there'll be no more whinging about a lack of a preseason;

After this, I'm finished with that - at some stage, even I could get fit after that! But I'll use it once more. It's just not happening for Stephane at the moment.

Some of things you can put down to lack of fitness, other things you can put down to not brilliant play, really, because some of the things that you expect of him, like being able to keep the ball not giving it away early in the game, wouldn't have anything to do with fitness, you know.

It goes without saying that Sessegnon has been nothing short of magnificent since he arrived at the club, but it's good to see that O'Neill won't just let him slack off based on what he has done, and focuses more on what he will do for us in the future.

We have some (potentially) world class talent behind Steven Fletcher in Adam Johnson, James McClean and Sessegnon himself, but with Johnson absent and McClean still with the words of O'Neill and Giovanni Trapattoni ringing in his ears, a huge weight is once again on the shoulders of the Beninese playmaker.

O'Neill's right to give him a kick up the backside if his sports beans don't work. Hopefully it does the trick, because with so much added competition, there'll be no hesitation to leave Sessegnon out it seems.