Northern Ireland Squad “Full of Confidence,” Says Manager O’Neill

Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill has stated that his squad is “full of confidence” in anticipation of their Nations League double-header against Belarus and Luxembourg. O’Neill’s team has secured victories in their last three matches played at their home ground, Windsor Park. O’Neill’s side currently leads League C Group 3 with seven points, having achieved two wins, one draw, and one defeat from their four fixtures in the competition thus far. Last month, O’Neill’s players followed a 0-0 draw in Belarus with a notable 5-0 triumph over Bulgaria in Belfast. Belarus is scheduled to visit Windsor Park on Friday night, and the campaign will conclude with an away game against Luxembourg on Monday. Securing the top position in the group could provide a pathway to the 2026 World Cup finals through play-off qualification. “There’s a lot of positivity around the team, which is good. There’s a little bit of keeping people’s feet on the ground a little bit as well,” O’Neill informed BBC Sport NI. He continued, “You’re not going to go out and score five goals every time you play. As long as the team continue to do the right things, play with the same intensity, play with the same energy, get the crowd involved in the game, which is always very important in Belfast.” O’Neill added, “This is a team that’s going to grow. The exciting time for this team is probably three or four years from now but they’ve got to a point where they’re winning games at international level and it’s a good habit for them to have.” A 2-0 home victory against Denmark in Northern Ireland’s final Euro 2024 qualifier 12 months ago ignited hopes for an improvement in the team’s performance. This year, the only games the team has played in Belfast were a Nations League victory over Luxembourg by the same scoreline in September and the decisive win against Bulgaria in October. “The lads have had a good 12 months. We haven’t played in Belfast a lot – the last two games have been really positive – we’ve scored seven goals and conceded none,” the NI boss further stated. He also remarked, “There are good habits, good traits, getting into the team, and we want to continue that on Friday. We as staff have prepared in the same way.” O’Neill observed, “The players enjoy playing here. You can see that in terms of their body language, the confidence they had in the game [against Bulgaria].” Justin Devenny played 74 minutes of Crystal Palace’s 2-0 loss to Fulham on Saturday. O’Neill’s squad includes numerous impressive young players who have progressed into the senior squad, such as Liverpool’s Conor Bradley, Shea Charles of Sheffield Wednesday, and Isaac Price, who was the hat-trick hero in the recent victory over the Bulgarians. Uncapped Brighton teenage defender Ruairi McConville was selected by O’Neill for the upcoming two matches. “It was the right route to take – and hopefully as the team progresses they agree with that,” O’Neill explained regarding the rapid integration of the country’s youthful talent. He further commented, “You’re obviously a bit concerned when there are so many young players but they have handled the situation well and I still think there are one or two young players on the periphery who can challenge and come into this squad as well.” O’Neill concluded, “The young boys have stepped up and we’re building an exciting team.” The latest player from the development pipeline to join O’Neill’s group is 21-year-old Crystal Palace midfielder Justin Devenny, who received a call-up to the squad on Monday after making his Premier League debut against Fulham on Saturday. “He [Justin] was on our radar and we’d tried to bring him in prior to now,” O’Neill outlined. He elaborated, “We’re always keeping close contact with those lads and we’ve obviously brought a number of the ’21s’ up already. Justin was probably next on that conveyer belt to come up. Having made his debut [for Palace] it seemed the perfect opportunity to do that.”