Northern Ireland v Norway

MANAGER’S VIEW

I will walk out on to the pitch at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park tonight with a spring in my step and a head full of dreams.

I am delighted to be the new manager of the Northern Ireland senior men’s team and I can’t wait to experience my first home game at the helm. The draw against Romania in Bucharest on Friday cemented what I already knew: that I have inherited a group of players who give their all for Northern Ireland. I thought each and every member of the team put in an incredible shift and that we deserved to come away with a point. To play like we did for nearly 60 minutes following Josh Magennis’s dismissal proved to me that the players’ fighting spirit and desire to do well are as strong as ever. And incidentally I felt the red card was harsh. Back to tonight and my first home game in charge of the team. Naturally, I would prefer to be striding out in front of more than 18,000 fans, however this terrible pandemic that we are all living through has scuppered that. It is not ideal to be playing behind closed doors, however it’s something we have to live with just now and adapt our way of life accordingly. It’s a massive honour to have been given the opportunity to manage the team and it’s a role which I will relish. And I promise to put my heart and soul into it. I would like to thank the association for putting their faith in me. I would also like to thank Michael O’Neill for his help during my time as Northern Ireland U21 manager. We worked closely together and I learned a lot from him. Naturally, I am hoping to continue his good work with the team. I am fortunate to have inherited a group of players who are very close-knit – there is a great togetherness in the squad – and who are led by good senior pros who lead by example.

While I have added a few new faces to the backroom staff - Damien Johnson and Gary Wallace - I am pleased several long-standing members of the backroom team are still onboard. I’ve had the pleasure of being part of the backroom set-up on several occasions and I know the players, like myself, really appreciate all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes to help us prepare for international matches. I think we, as a group, can build on the work of the previous manager and try to achieve our goals – wins in the UEFA Nations League, Euro 2020 qualification and, further down the line, qualification to a World Cup finals. Norway will be tough opponents. They will be aiming to bounce back after losing their Nations League opener - against Austria at home on Friday - and will be hungry for success. In their squad they have exciting young players who catch the eye as well as several experienced internationals. My team will have to be fully focused to get a result against Lars Lagerback’s side, however the players have recovered well following their exertions in Bucharest and are ready to go again. We have prepared well for this encounter and I am confident we will give a good account of ourselves. Finally, I would like to applaud our captain Steven Davis. Tonight he will equal the legendary Pat Jennings’ Northern Ireland caps record of 119. He is a great captain and fully deserves the plaudits that will be coming his way. He is a humble guy who leads by example. I hope he goes on to break the record next month and wins many more caps for his country. Ian Baraclough Northern Ireland Manager

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