Lee Cattermole has admitted that talks of him losing the Sunderland captaincy affected his form during the early parts of the season.
The summer arrival of John O'Shea from Manchester United led many to believe that Steve Bruce would make the Republic of Ireland international his new skipper.
However, after a spell on the sidelines, Cattermole has returned to the starting lineup and resumed his duties.
"John came in during the summer and straight away, all the headlines were 'Lee loses the captaincy'," he told the Sunderland Echo.
"Maybe that put a bit of doubt in my mind. The gaffer made it clear to me that that wasn't going to be the case. But it's stuff that adds up and you start asking questions of yourself.
"I'm a confident lad, though, and I don't think you become a bad player overnight."
The 23-year-old joined the Black Cats in 2009 from Wigan Athletic.
