Following Northern Ireland's 3-1 defeat to Germany in their recent World Cup 2026 qualifier, manager Michael O'Neill expressed his disappointment with the defensive errors that cost his team a chance at a positive result. The match, held in Cologne, saw Germany secure their first win of the qualifying campaign after a shocking loss to Slovakia.
O'Neill acknowledged the "real sense of disappointment" in the Northern Ireland dressing room after the match. Despite the loss, he commended his team's performance for large stretches of the game. "For 60 or 65 minutes we were well in the game," O'Neill noted. However, he lamented the "soft defending" that led to Germany's second goal, a strike from Nadiem Amiri. O'Neill felt Amiri's goal could have been defended better.
Germany took an early lead through Serge Gnabry, but Northern Ireland responded with a goal from Isaac Price. Price's volley from a corner brought the game level and gave Northern Ireland hope of frustrating the hosts. However, Germany's two goals in quick succession during the second half, from Amiri and Florian Wirtz, ultimately sealed the victory for the Germans. Wirtz's free-kick was a superb finish, but O'Neill questioned the awarding of the free-kick in the first place. "The third goal isn't a free-kick. It's a fantastic finish but it's a soft free-kick," he stated. He also felt the referee was "a bit fussy" in the second half, after a well-officiated first half.
O'Neill highlighted the challenges his team faced, particularly the difficulty of playing two games in a short period. "This is a really tough game, second game in a short period of time. It showed we weren't able to make changes. We just don't have the depth to cope in this situation," he explained. He acknowledged the limitations in his squad depth compared to a team like Germany. "If you look at our squad we don't have many Premier League players, most of our players are sprinkled between the Championship and League One," O'Neill said before the match.
Looking ahead, O'Neill remains optimistic about Northern Ireland's chances in the qualifying group. He believes his side is where they expected to be at this stage, with a win against Luxembourg and a defeat against Germany. Crucially, Northern Ireland have two home games coming up against Slovakia and Germany in October.
Prior to the match, O'Neill had expressed excitement about the opportunity to gauge his team's progress against a top side like Germany. He recognized the significant challenge, describing it as "a big step up" for his young team. O'Neill also emphasized the importance of resilience and a strong desire to perform well as a nation. "We have to punch above our weight and this is an opportunity for us to punch above our weight," he said.
Despite the defeat, O'Neill can take positives from his team's performance. They demonstrated resilience in leveling the score after conceding early, and they competed well against a strong German side for a significant portion of the match. However, the defensive lapses will be a concern, and O'Neill will be looking for his team to tighten up at the back in the crucial home games to come. He had told media that a positive result in Cologne, following the win against Luxembourg, would turn a good trip into a great one.
