Sunderland defender Luke O'Nien has insisted the players must share responsibility for the pressure on Régis Le Bris, while delivering an honest message to supporters following recent boos.

The Black Cats responded to a difficult week with a much-needed 1-0 victory over Chelsea at the Stadium of Light on Sunday afternoon, courtesy of Enzo Le Fée's first-half penalty. It was a vastly improved performance from Sunderland, who had faced growing criticism following disappointing defeats against Coventry City and Dinamo Zagreb, with Le Bris coming under increasing scrutiny.

Supporters made their frustrations clear following the 2-0 defeat to the Croatian side on Thursday, with boos ringing around the Stadium of Light after another below-par display. However, O'Nien believes the responsibility for Sunderland's struggles must be shared throughout the dressing room rather than falling entirely on the head coach.

"Listen, I think as players as well we're under pressure. Performance comes down to every single person, and everybody feels that, and I think it's rightly so," O'Nien said. "We're out there to perform, and we haven't, we haven't got the points we want, and the gaffer is the face of that, but equally, as players, myself, senior players, the younger players, we all take responsibility for that. It's a team effort; we go out there, and yeah, so I think the crowd wanted that today, we all wanted it today, and yeah, very proud of the boys and us for that."

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Sunderland's players have repeatedly voiced their support for Le Bris in recent weeks, with Robin Roefs and Noah Sadiki among those publicly backing the Frenchman. Sunday's performance offered perhaps the clearest demonstration yet of that support, with Sunderland showing the defensive organisation, intensity and determination that had been missing from recent displays.

The response from the Stadium of Light crowd was equally significant, with supporters loudly chanting Le Bris' name following Le Fée's penalty and applauding the team at the final whistle. O'Nien acknowledged the frustration supporters have experienced during Sunderland's difficult run and insisted the players understood their responsibility to provide performances worthy of the backing they receive.

"They've been, they were excellent, and we've got to give them the performance for them to get behind, and I think we did that from the very first couple of minutes, the way we pressed, the way we hunted them down, and the crowd responded. So we're well aware of what the fans want to see; when it's not going well, we hold our hands up. There's never a lack of effort or trying. Sometimes it doesn't click, and we've been working really hard behind the scenes, and today you saw that."

The victory lifted Sunderland onto eight points after ten Premier League matches and provided a timely boost ahead of the international break.