Northern Ireland v Poland: Hosts ‘in control of own destiny’, but can they take next step?


Northern Ireland fell to a 2-0 defeat in Poland in their Nations League opener after a quickfire double for the hosts.

That was followed by a dramatic 3-2 win at home to Bosnia-Herzegovina, before a draw with Romania was followed by a 1-0 win in the reverse fixture.

The opening 45 minutes of the win over Romania featured some of the best football Northern Ireland have played under Oxtoby, and a free-flowing move led to teenager Kascie Weir netting the decisive goal.

Oxtoby said the key to a positive result against Poland will be “concentration”, and it will be a challenge against a “really good team”.

“We have come a long way since that game and we were disappointed at elements of it.

“They are fairly consistent and good at what they do. We know they are going to come here and cause us problems in certain areas.

“We will hope to cause them problems in return. It will be a great challenge for our young group.”

After a number of matches at Windsor Park and Inver Park, Northern Ireland will return to Seaview for the first time since October 2023.

The Belfast venue was a cornerstone of their successful Euro 2022 qualification campaign, but they haven’t played there since drawing with Hungary in the inaugural Nations League.

Oxtoby said they want to make the venue a “fortress” and the compact ground can help them cause Poland “some problems”.

“We want to make it uncomfortable for Poland, that would be the ideal.

“We had a conversation before training about having a conversation about how good they can be, and I think they are now starting to see that.”



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