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Northern Ireland must learn from Denmark loss

Northern Ireland must learn from Denmark loss

BBC News6 hours ago

Northern Ireland's Trai Hume believes the lessons from Saturday's 2-1 friendly defeat to Denmark can be of benefit during the side's 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.Michael O'Neill's side begin their efforts to make it to the USA, Canada and Mexico next summer with trips to face Luxembourg and Germany in September.Despite taking the lead in Copenhagen, Sunderland defender Hume said the fact that his side were made to "suffer" without the ball for long periods can be instructive."We're going to have to go away to tough teams and probably suffer a bit without the ball the way we did [on Saturday] and try our best to be organised and disciplined," said the 23-year-old who captained the side for the third time."It was a very young team out there, especially when the subs came on."Obviously, that wee bit of inexperience [was telling], but that's stuff you have to learn from because we are going to go away and it's going to be probably even tougher than what it was."Northern Ireland will conclude this international window with another friendly against Iceland at Windsor Park with the visitors arriving in Belfast off the back of an away victory over Scotland on Friday night."The home record has been very good of late and we don't want to lose that," Hume added."Iceland's going to be a tough test, it'll be another tough game, but we've got to be ready for it."

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