Northern Ireland ended their four-game Nations League window with a 0-0 draw against Georgia at Windsor Park on Monday night, a result that left a sense of frustration around Belfast even as the campaign as a whole pointed to clear progress.
Isaac Price’s saved penalty in the 83rd minute was the most glaring missed opportunity to take all three points, in a second consecutive goalless draw in Belfast after Hungary also left with a point last week. Paddy Kelly and Josh Magennis were unable to capitalise on promising positions, while Ruairi McConville hit the bar in the incident that led to the penalty. Magennis told BBC Sport NI he was “bitterly disappointed” to take only a point from the game.
When the window is viewed as a whole, however, it can only be considered a success. Northern Ireland collected eight points from four games, having previously taken their first nine Nations League points across 17 matches. They won away in Georgia and against Ukraine in Slovakia, the latter a 3-0 victory with a side whose average age was as low as 22. Four successive clean sheets also ensured they were the only team in the competition yet to concede a goal.
The defensive record was achieved without Conor Bradley, who remained on the sidelines, while Daniel Ballard was only fit to feature in the first game. O’Neill also lost Ballard to a hamstring injury after the opening match in Tbilisi and was without Ali McCann coming into the window.
Despite those absences, O’Neill kept changes to a minimum, starting only 15 different players across the four matches. Two of his changes were enforced by Ballard’s injury and Ethan Galbraith’s absence against Ukraine to attend the birth of his child. Young centre-backs Ruairi McConville, 21, and Tom Atcheson, 20, looked ready to play at this level, Ciaron Brown started all four games, and Kieran Morrison, Terry Devlin and Brodie Spencer impressed when given a chance against Ukraine.
Shea Charles, who along with Trai Hume displayed Premier League pedigree throughout the window, said: “It was a hard camp, a lot different to what any of us have experienced before, and I thought we dealt with it really well.” He added: “We’ve won two away games, drew two at home, no goals conceded, there’s not many complaints. I think we’ve been really good.”
O’Neill described it as “one of the most enjoyable windows I’ve had as an international manager” and praised his squad. “How they’ve applied themselves, how desperate they are to do well, that’s a real positive,” he said. “We’ve a brilliant group of players and a lot of them I think will play international football for a long time.”
Northern Ireland remain top of Group B2 before next month’s concluding fixtures at home to Ukraine and away to Hungary. They have already secured their League B status at least, with back-to-back Nations League promotions and second seeding in December’s Euro 2028 qualifying draw still on the table.
The mood around the team has grown. Magennis said: “Honestly, the sky’s the limit. I think they’ve probably got maybe four tournaments to have a crack at. The group’s in a fantastic place.” O’Neill was slightly more coy but echoed the general sentiment: “I know what the potential of this team is, I’m not always going to share that with you guys if I’m honest. For me the team is maturing and growing and progressing all the time. It’s good that the fans are excited, that’s what we want. We want them to look at this team and be proud. I know these boys over the last two or three years, I’ve seen them grow. I see them with each other, which is really important and this team shows all the best sides of Northern Ireland.”