4 days ago
Michael O'Neill ready for NI's next generation to take another step against old foes Denmark
They have largely continued to fly high since, with the ultimate aim to soar all the way to America, Canada and Mexico for next year's World Cup Finals.
The latest stop on the journey sees O'Neill's young guns come face to face with Denmark again – on Saturday evening – this time in Copenhagen at Parken.
Prior to beating the Danes 2-0 in Belfast in the last game of the Euro 2024 qualifiers, Northern Ireland had suffered a disappointing campaign. Goals from Isaac Price and Dion Charles provided the Green and White Army with hope that all was not lost and since then that optimism has grown with further impressive results and performances plus success in winning a Nations League group.
Exciting players like Price, Conor Bradley, Trai Hume, Shea Charles, Pierce Charles and Brodie Spencer have Northern Ireland fans daring to dream again that under O'Neill's management another major tournament is a distinct possibility.
The match with Denmark will be the third of four warm-up games this year – with Iceland at Windsor Park on Tuesday – for the World Cup qualifiers which start in September with a double header away to Luxembourg and Germany.
In the previous two friendlies in March, Northern Ireland drew 1-1 at home to Switzerland and, weakened by injuries, were ripped apart in Sweden in a 5-1 loss.
Given the strength of the Danish side, the game in Copenhagen promises to be a tough test too, though having the likes of Bradley, Hume and Daniel Ballard available for this Scandinavian challenge will help.
On what he is expecting, O'Neill said: 'Any nation when they play at home wants to put on a show. You can see in the squad that Denmark have picked they are obviously taking the game very seriously.
'They have players that play in the top leagues and players who are trying to establish themselves in this squad. They will be keen to show they are ready to start big games.
'This is as tough a test as we can expect to get. I felt this game was as close as we could get to possibly playing Germany in September away. That game is in Cologne which is a very similar stadium so it will give us the best preparation possible.'
Asked if he was fearful of the game being as difficult as the one in Sweden, O'Neill stated: 'There's no point playing teams you will beat all the time. You won't get any better if you do that.
'We are a Pot 3 team, so if we are going to qualify for a tournament we will have to get results that people don't expect and we have to find a way to deal with teams in Pot 1, which Denmark have consistently been. The result is always important but this is preparation for September.
'We talked about the Sweden game and we were very young on the night and the result was a little bit harsh on us, but that is what international football can do. It can be harsh on you. The important thing is if we go through difficult moments against Denmark we are able to stay in the game and find a way back into the game.'
Reflecting on the last match with the Danes, which was a launchpad for his youthful side, O'Neill declared: 'We came off a bad, a disappointing result in Finland (a 4-0 defeat) and the most important thing was we got a good reaction.
'It was a very disciplined performance that came with two very good goals. We counter-attacked extremely well and limited Denmark to very few opportunities in the game.
'They maybe look at the game and say that they had already qualified (for Euro 2024) at that point in time, but for us it was about taking a step forward and that's what we managed to do.
'We took that step forward into the games in March (2024 drawing in Romania and winning in Scotland) and subsequently into the Nations League.
'It was an important game for us because it did set a trigger a confidence in a group of players that, until that point, hadn't won a lot of games at international level.
'Subsequently, I think in the last 13 international games we've been beaten by Spain, Sweden and Bulgaria all away from home.
'There's been a lot of progression, a lot of learnings in that period from the group of players.
'But we've still got a long way to go. The time to judge an international footballer really in terms of the level that you get to is probably 24-25.
'Some players don't even get the opportunity to play international football until they're 24-25. By the time this group of players hits that age group, I'm hoping that if the progression continues, we'll have an experienced team that will come here even better prepared than we will be on Saturday night.'
Out of the 26 players originally selected for the June internationals, only Paddy McNair is out after picking up an injury in the four day Marbella training camp.
It means the only player in his 30s left in the squad is George Saville.
O'Neill added: 'It's a friendly game. They've got nothing to fear from this type of game and we'll have to go and play. I think that this is a good opportunity for our players.'
