‘We're up against it' - Ireland coach's dire warning over lack of funding
O'Brien has led the Boys in Green to a first ever World Cup qualification at Under-17s level, where they will play Paraguay, Panama and Uzbekistan in the group stages.
Their most recent European progression came in 2023, when a Lamine Yamal-inspired Spain eliminated Ireland at the quarter-final stage.
It's not the big boys that O'Brien sees accelerating their youth development - he is aware of huge leaps being made beyond the top-tier sides.
And a failure to make the Irish system fit for purpose will have devastating consequences for the game in this country at all levels, right up to the senior international team.
'I see it. I'm on the coal front. We're up against it,' he warned. 'We are competitive, but if we want to keep in those competitive layers, we have to secure funding.
'I'll always say this, it's not the Tier 1 countries I'd be comparing ourselves to, the Portugals, the Spains, they're just all on a different level completely and have been right through their history.
'I'm talking now about the Eastern Bloc countries. I'm talking about Tier 3 countries, Scandinavian countries.
'They are all developing and accelerating their resources and developments every year.
''For us to be in that mix, we really have to secure the funding.
'I think a lot of the plan is ready to push. The clubs have a lot of ideas that they want to do.
'But I think for me, then it allows getting full-time people in and working with the players at a younger age. It's going to be vital to our future.'
O'Brien hopes that Ireland's success in reaching the World Cup - as one of just 11 European nations out of 54 to progress to November's tournament in Qatar - can move the funding conversation forward.
'I'm obviously very passionate about this as well because I've come through the whole system in this country,' said the former Cork City midfielder.
'I've played schoolboys, I've played Munster Senior League, I've played League of Ireland.
'I've dedicated myself to working with young players like a lot of people in this country and across different parts of the country.
'Yes, I think the Government could look at the World Cup, absolutely, but whether it's the World Cup or not, we have to secure funding. It has to be secured to progress basically.
'That funding, rightly (has to go on) infrastructure, facilities, but for me, we have to get expertise working in clubs that are full-time.
'That's going to take a long time to get, but it's going to have to start on the coaching side, on the administration side, on the performance side.
'The supports that need to go into our clubs earlier in order for us to progress and compete at international levels.'
Ireland qualified for the World Cup as one of the best runners up in the qualifiers for the European Championships.
UEFA's decision to reduce the tournament from 16 teams to eight meant that O'Brien's side missed out on this month's finals - but their performances in the qualifiers earned them the huge consolation prize of a spot in Qatar, where the tournament will consist of 48 teams.
Putting Ireland's qualification into context, O'Brien said: 'Spain haven't qualified for this.
'At senior level, we all know about them, and another country that would be a huge powerhouse in youth football is the Netherlands, two of those countries haven't qualified for this.
'We have. We're doing something right.
'I'm doing this a while now, this is my eighth year and this will be our fifth major competition for this age group. We've been to four European finals and this will be our first World Cup.
'What can it do for the country? It can inspire, it can showcase the talent we have.
'To get out of Europe, it's an incredible achievement and one that has to be acknowledged, but now we have to move on…
'How do we make that the norm is the question that probably ties into the whole Government, the whole facilities, funding.'
Preparations for the World Cup begin next week when Ireland head to Croatia for friendlies against three Under-18 sides - Norway (June 4), Turkey (June 7) and Croatia (June 9).
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