‘Big blow’ for Bradley to miss play-off – O’Neill

Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill said it “would certainly be nice” for the injured Conor Bradley to still be a part of the squad for their 2026 World Cup play-off against Italy in March.

O’Neill’s side face the four-time world champions in the semi-finals on 26 March and, if they can overcome Gennaro Gattuso’s side in Bergamo, would play Wales or Bosnia-Herzegovina for a place at the tournament this summer.

They will, however, be without Bradley for the game with the Liverpool right-back to miss the rest of the campaign after undergoing surgery on the knee injury he sustained in Liverpool’s 0-0 draw at Arsenal this month.

Former Northern Ireland international Stephen Craigan said that he felt Bradley should still travel to Italy as additional motivation for the squad and O’Neill hopes that can come to pass should the Premier League side allow it.

“The training base is in Liverpool, so it is convenient for Conor to drop in and see us,” he told BBC Sport NI.

“I’ll speak to him and have been speaking to him, that’s something for closer to the time and for his club to decide if it is right.

Bradley, 22, has won 30 caps for his country and has worn the captain’s armband on a number of occasions.

While O’Neill conceded that losing Bradley is a “huge blow” to NI’s hopes of reaching a first World Cup since 1986, he believes his squad has enough depth in the right-back position to cope.

Sunderland’s Trai Hume usually plays as a centre-back in a back-three for his country, although predominately is a full-back for his club, while Oxford United’s Brodie Spencer deputised for Bradley against Germany in October.

Portsmouth’s versatile Terry Devlin is another option too.

“I thought Conor had a great campaign for us, we missed him in the Germany game when he was suspended, but it’s something we have a period of time to prepare for, it’s not like it happened the week leading into the game,” O’Neill added.

“We have people that can play in that position, like Brodie Spencer, Terry Devlin is playing well for his club, Trai Hume can play there, so it is probably the position we are strongest in terms of options but not having Conor and what he brings on and off the pitch is a big blow and we have to deal with it.”

While certainly without Bradley, O’Neill also provided a fitness update on some other key players, including goalkeeper Pierce Charles who O’Neill says has “a chance” to be fit despite a second shoulder injury of his campaign.

Charles missed Northern Ireland’s entire World Cup qualifying campaign to date through a shoulder injury sustained in August then, after returning for Sheffield Wednesday in December, injured the opposite shoulder against Brentford in the FA Cup this month.

“Pierce didn’t have surgery and we were pleased he didn’t have the surgery because that probably would have ruled him out,” O’Neill said.

“He’s got a chance of being fit, we have to see how his rehab goes and timeframe leading into the [Italy] game when he’s back.”