Latest news with #SheaCharles
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Danish heartbreak offered glimpse into NI future
International Friendly: Denmark v Northern Ireland Venue: Parken Stadium, Copenhagen Date: Saturday, 7 June Kick-off: 18:00 BST Coverage: Watch live on BBC iPlayer and BBC Two NI, listen on BBC Sounds and follow live text commentary & in-play clips on the BBC Sport website Advertisement Northern Ireland's last visit to Copenhagen will always be best remembered for the almost five-minute VAR check that preceded the disallowing of Callum Marshall's injury-time equaliser. The debutant striker thought his instinctive flick only nine minutes into his international career had secured a creditable draw only for technology to intervene and eventually judge that Jonny Evans was marginally offside in the build-up. Michael O'Neill described the decision as "a joke" but, as he brings his side back to the Parken Stadium just shy of two years on for a friendly on Saturday evening, the manager can look back on the heart-breaking night as a key staging post of his second spell in charge. Coming in between dispiriting home defeats by Finland and Kazakhstan, the game may not have appeared to be any great turning point yet, in the time since, those who were then just dipping their toes into international waters have become the core of his side. Advertisement O'Neill was without 10 regulars when last in Copenhagen, travelling without the likes of Steven Davis, Stuart Dallas, Corry Evans, Josh Magennis and Conor Washington, while Craig Cathcart pulled out on the morning of the game. In their absence, O'Neill started three teenagers in an international XI for the first time in his career, with Liverpool's Conor Bradley joined by Isaac Price and Shea Charles, while another two, Marshall and Dale Taylor, came off the bench. Indeed, it was the first time since May 2011 that any Northern Ireland side had featured as many as three players yet to celebrate their 20th birthdays. Then it was Josh Carson, Johnny Gorman and Lee Hodson who all started together against Wales in the short-lived Nations Cup under manager Nigel Worthington. Advertisement While the latter won 24 caps and was a member of the squad that went to Euro 2016, that neither Carson nor Gorman hit double figures illustrates the vagaries of development when it comes to throwing young players in at the deep end. With that in mind, O'Neill can only be delighted with how his own teenage trio have progressed. Now all 21-years-old, Bradley is the team's talisman and was a part of the Liverpool squad that won the Premier League this season. Shea Charles was in his final weeks on the books at Manchester City at the time of the Denmark fixture and would soon join Southampton. On loan at Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship this season, he impressed at Hillsborough and, like Bradley, has already captained the international side. Advertisement For a team who have struggled for a regular goalscorer since the days of David Healy and Kyle Lafferty, the final member of the triumvirate, Price, developing a knack for finding the back of the net has been key. Having left Everton for Standard Liege shortly after his first international start, the midfielder swapped Belgium for West Brom in January and already has eight goals in 20 caps. In Northern Ireland's history only Norman Whiteside - who scored his eighth international goal three weeks and six days after his 21st birthday - ever scored as many at such a young age. Throw in the fact that the June 2023 game also represented a first start for Trai Hume, another of O'Neill's captains who was integral to Sunderland's promotion to the Premiership this season, and the game can now be said to have represented a real glimpse into the side's future. Isaac Price has scored six goals in his past five internationals for Northern Ireland [Getty Images] Final preparations for World Cup qualification Back then, Northern Ireland were in the middle of a run of just three wins in 16 fixtures and O'Neill said after the game that he was "not thinking about [tournament] qualification" but instead simply "about putting points on the board". Advertisement Since, the goalposts have moved with three defeats in 13 games, a run that began with a 2-0 win in the reverse fixture with Denmark, raising hopes that O'Neill could lead a second squad to a major tournament. With this window, where Northern Ireland will also host Iceland in Belfast on 10 June, representing the final games before qualification for the 2026 World Cup begins in September, the return to Copenhagen offers an interesting yardstick to measure progress. With Bradley and Crystal Palace's Justin Devenny the only players in O'Neill's panel to have featured in the Premier League this season, their hosts on Saturday, ranked 21st in the Fifa world rankings, will contain a plethora of players drawn from Europe's top leagues. In Northern Ireland's last outing, an injury-hit panel struggled in a 5-1 defeat to Sweden when the top-flight quality of Newcastle United's Alexander Isak proved especially telling. Advertisement With Germany in their four-team group to make it to Canada, Mexico and the USA next summer, there is clearly a need for more regular exposure to higher level of opposition. Two years ago a callow side almost pulled off a shock draw. Saturday offers the opportunity to show how far along the path that same group have come since then.
RTÉ News
6 days ago
- General
- RTÉ News
North's kids all grown up and ready for Danish return
Northern Ireland will return to Copenhagen next week a little under two years since their near miss in a Euro 2024 qualifier that hinted at brighter things to come. Callum Marshall thought he had scored a stoppage-time equaliser on his debut before VAR intervened to deny the teenager and Northern Ireland in a 1-0 defeat in June 2023. But in what was only Michael O'Neill's fourth game back in charge, a young Northern Ireland side – in which Conor Bradley, Shea Charles and Isaac Price all started as teenagers – competed well against a vastly experienced Denmark side away from home. A few months later Northern Ireland won the reverse fixture 2-0 in Belfast, the start of a run of results in which they won six of 11 games, including the thumping 5-0 victory over Bulgaria as they topped their Nations League group. This weekend's return to the Parken Stadium is another opportunity to measure progress. "The team now would look very different now on paper," O'Neill said as he recalled that last visit to Denmark. "We were asking a lot of those players. Now we're two years down the line. "If you look at the version of Isaac Price we have now compared to two years ago, Shea Charles, Conor Bradley, Trai Hume, and Daniel Ballard, there's a lot that's come from those two years. "There's been a lot of development in those players, both at club and international level. From that perspective the younger players are more ready for this type of game. "On the other side, we don't have Jonny Evans, for example, in our squad, and we've lost a little bit of experience around those younger players. But those young players are now firmly established in our team." The Denmark game and the home friendly against Iceland that follows will serve as final dress rehearsals before the World Cup qualifying campaign starts with a trip to Luxembourg in September. While Denmark are ranked 21st in the world, Iceland are three places below Northern Ireland in 74th. Having reached their first major tournament when they played at Euro 2016, reaching the quarter-finals, before playing at the following World Cup, Iceland have had to rebuild, and O'Neill sees similarities with Northern Ireland's own situation. "Any team comes to a natural end and I think they've gone through that experience, a little but like ourselves going through a transitional period, to try and redevelop and establish themselves again. "They were brilliant at being that underdog and making life difficult for some very, very big countries. "You can only do it with the players you have but they are always a very difficult team to play. "We'll come into from a tough game in Copenhagen and we'll have to be ready to give a good performance here at home. It's important we can keep our level in front of our own fans so that will be a challenge we'll set ourselves."
BBC News
26-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
NI 'good enough' to compete with top teams
Shea Charles believes Northern Ireland have to use Tuesday's 5-1 friendly defeat in Sweden as motivation for their World Cup loss in Stockholm was just a third in Northern Ireland's past 12 matches as Alexander Isak spearheaded a wounded Sweden, who lost on Saturday in Luxembourg, to a big O'Neill's side will face two more friendlies, away to Denmark and at home to Iceland, before their opening World Cup qualifiers in Luxembourg and Germany."Definitely. It's almost like a look into the future of what we will come up against," said Charles when asked if the defeat would fuel their qualifying campaign."I know Germany are one of the best teams in the world but it's a game of football and anything can happen."I think we are good enough to compete against these sorts of teams." 'They finished their chances, we didn't' While it may be a strange statement to say after a 5-1 defeat, Northern Ireland showed in Friday's draw against Switzerland that they can match sides who are regulars at major tournaments.O'Neill's team have also impressed against the likes of Scotland and Romania in the past 12 months, but the game in Sweden was a harsh who captained the side at 21, is confident it will not leave any lasting impact on a young panel who had been on an upward trajectory."I don't think it was a 5-1 game, which is always hard to look at when it is that score," he said."They finished their chances, unlike us. I feel that we had similar chances."Northern Ireland were without three first-choice defenders in Conor Bradley, Trai Hume and Dan Ballard, while Eoin Toal also likely would have featured if fit."We should have been a bit more compact, but we didn't and it ended up being five," added Charles."That's what that's what happens when you do make mistakes against players of that quality."
BBC News
05-02-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
'Bringing back Shea Charles was massive'
We asked what you thought about Sheffield Wednesday's transfer business after the window closed on Shea Charles returned on loan from Southampton after the Owls struck a fresh agreement with the Premier League side, while Stuart Armstrong was signed from Vancouver Ibrahim Cissoko also joined on loan until the end of the season from Toulouse, having spent the first half of the campaign with Championship strugglers Sean Fusire was the only player to leave, joining Carlisle United on loan until the end of the are your responses:Ben: Charles coming back was big. I don't believe we need a No.9 as stats suggest our attacking output is good. Would have liked to have seen maybe LWB & CB or maybe two join the club to tighten up defensively. Still sort our home form and turn a few of the draws into wins and we could sneak into the play-offs. We just need to remember that so far this has been an amazing improvement on last We are desperate for a strong centre-back and have been for a long time. Why no action?David: I think we needed a defender. There is still a chance we sign Ryo Hatsuse, but if we don't it could prove disastrous, as we only have two fit central defenders. I think Armstrong and Cissoko are good signings, but without extra defensive cover could prove to be Disappointed. I thought we would have done a lot more business if we are aiming for the top Everyone thought a centre-back was the priority, but that didn't happen. Securing Shea Charles by extending his loan was massive, and the signing of Stuart Armstrong was another masterstroke. Although we wanted a couple more loans, we need to remember where we were last season. Rome wasn't built in a Wednesday got the important things right and may have added a useful bit of flair as well. It will add up to an interesting end to the We are nowhere near a promotion side. Charles' loan extension is very important but the newcomers are very moderate indeed. Just as we are at the moment. Staying up should be the focus, nothing Good spirit at club which can easily be disrupted by too many additions and players who are not match fit. Yes, another central defender wouldn't go amiss, but time for the current defenders to stand up. Not disappointed and always a balancing actIan: Underwhelming transfer window. Hopefully Danny's tactical nous will keep us out of An opportunity lost as usual. Chansiri either wants success or just mid-table happiness that suits him. Danny will not hang around Some defensive cover would have been useful, especially as we seem to struggle to hold on to a winning position at the moment. Play-offs probably unrealistic because of that but we can hope...
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
No chance I'd have joined Sheff Utd
On-loan Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Shea Charles has said he would not have joined cross-city rivals Sheffield United this month. The 21-year-old was recalled by parent club Southampton two weeks ago, with Blades manager Chris Wilder saying he was a player they would be interested in signing. However, the Owls agreed a new loan deal with Saints to keep the Northern Ireland international until the end of the season. "It was a weird one. Any interest is good interest but I was always focused on staying here," he told BBC Radio Sheffield. When asked if he could have made the move to United he added: "Nah, no chance." Charles has been ever-present for Wednesday in the league since joining from the Premier League club on 27 August. His recall was unexpectedly announced by owner Dejphon Chansiri at a fans' forum, hours after he had previously said that Charles would be staying for the remainder of the season. The former Manchester City man said he was "relieved" the situation had now been resolved. "It's been a little bit chaotic. The deadline for my recall was the 15th and I got recalled then. It was very last minute," he added. "I didn't know what I was doing for that seven-day period. I was relieved and happy when it got sorted. "I came here for a season-long loan and I didn't want to cut it short. It's a great group because it's a great group of lads and a good coaching staff. "Everyone around the club is really good and we're pushing for something." Charles joined Southampton from City in the summer of 2023 for an undisclosed fee and made 32 league appearances as they won promotion via the play-offs. However, he featured less frequently towards the end of the season and former boss Russell Martin was content to allow him to go out on loan. When it was announced his temporary stay would be cut short, Wednesday defender Di'Shon Bernard called him "irreplaceable", while boss Danny Rohl said he was an "outstanding talent". Charles has helped the Owls to push for a top-six spot and said that staying at the club until May was best for all parties. "I'd like to think it had a good influence because I was quite firm in staying here. My agent knew that and Southampton knew that," he said. "They've seen I've progressed well this season and I think they're more than happy to see me finish the season. "This is a big club and there's a good coaching staff and team to learn from. It's a good place to stay. "I've only been here a short time so to have that good connection with the fans makes me happy and even more confident. Every week you are playing for the fans and when you have that kind of relationship it makes it so much easier. "From the very start the team has been so good. They made me feel at home straight away and when they're saying stuff like that about me it makes me proud to be their team-mate."
