World Cup draw: ‘Huge challenge’ but draw ‘suits’ Northern Ireland says manager Michael O’Neill
During O’Neill’s second spell in charge of the country, he Sent a team composed mainly of young peoplerelying heavily on the likes of Connor Bradley, Shay Charles, Trey Hume and Isaac Price.
The team had an impressive performance Beat Bulgaria 5-0 at Windsor Park They were top of the Nations League third tier in October and have made steady progress over the past 14 months.
However, there are still some inconsistencies due to the players’ inexperience, and O’Neill believes the extra time before the start of qualifying will benefit his young group.
He believes the lack of competitive games at the end of the club’s season is also an advantage.
“We’re hoping to put together a (friendly) schedule in March and June to help ensure we’re ready for September,” he said.
“I also think games in September, October, November suit us better than games in June. June is always the most difficult and players may need surgery at the end of the season to stay fit. “.
“Our players mainly play in the EFL (English Football League). Their games end on May 5 and sometimes we ask them to play on June 12, so it’s very difficult. I don’t think there’s that intensity in June. The competition is a reward for them.”
