Northern Ireland 1-0 Luxembourg: NI enter play-offs with ‘a lot of optimism’ – Michael O’Neill

In a team already missing key players such as the Charles brothers, Shea and Pierce, and the suspended Daniel Ballard, the youngsters had an opportunity to shine in the final qualifiers after Friday’s defeat to Slovakia.

Given they were at risk of suspension, Trai Hume and Justin Devenny were given the evening off and talisman Conor Bradley was withdrawn at half-time.

Jamie Donley will grab the headlines after his first international goal but Jamie McDonnell made a strong start, Ruairi McConville was again commanding in defence, and youngster Patrick Kelly made his debut.

“Obviously we’ve had to make a lot of changes to the team. If you look at the players we used tonight, five of them are under 21, so I think that’s been a real positive for us,” O’Neill said.

“Luxembourg is a good team. The results this season have probably been a bit harsh for them and their performances have been good.

“They haven’t been beaten easily in any game, so we take a lot from the fact that we beat them 3-1 away and 1-0 at home. A clean sheet was positive and there were a lot of good performances too.”