World Cup draw: ‘Huge challenge’ but pool group ‘suits’ Northern Ireland, says manager Michael O’Neill

In O’Neill’s second spell in charge of his country, he has fielded a predominantly youthful team, relying heavily on players such as Conor Bradley, Shea Charles, Trai Hume and Isaac Price.

The side produced a noteworthy performance to beat Bulgaria 5-0 at Windsor Park in October on their way to topping their third-tier Nations League group and there has been steady improvement over the past 14 months.

There have still been some of the inconsistencies associated with players lacking experience, however, and O’Neill said the additional time before starting their qualifying campaign will benefit his young panel.

Not having competitive fixtures at the end of the club season, he feels, is also an advantage.

“We’ve got March and June to hopefully put together a set of [friendly] fixtures that help make sure that we’re ready for September,” he explained.

“I also think that playing September, October, November suits us better than playing a competitive game in June. The June fixtures are always the most difficult with players possibly needing procedures at the end of the season, where their head is, keeping them fit.

“Our players predominantly play in the EFL [English Football League]. Their fixtures finish on 5 May and sometimes we’re asking them to play on 12 June so it’s very difficult. Not having that competitive game in June I think is a bonus for us.”