Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
WIZARDS OF OSLO
O’neill wants magic in Norway
MICHAEL O’NEILL wants his players to write their own destiny and end the World Cup qualifiers on a high in Oslo.
Northern Ireland are edging ever closer to a play-off spot for Russia but may still need a point at the Ullevaal Stadion to seal one of the eight best runners-up spots.
Better still, a win would enhance hopes of being seeded for the play-off draw which takes place in Zurich in 10 days time.
It promises to be a nail-biting
48 hours for boss O’neill who said: “We might have enough points but we want to finish off the campaign as strongly as we
very beginning that it would be very tight and eventually it may be to the runners-up detriment.
“Serbia are at home to Georgia and it would surprise me but we’re in with a fighting chance and now we go to Cardiff now looking to win.
“We know what we have to do. This is it. It’s like the Euros when we knew we had to beat Italy to get through to the Last 16 so it’s there for us.
“We’ll go to Cardiff and apply ourselves. If we play really strongly and resolutely, I think we can win the match.”
But asked if the horror tackle on Seamus Coleman the last time the teams met in March will set the tone on the pitch on Monday, he said: “Hopefully not but it will be a big occasion. Wales probably have to win themselves so it is set up nicely.”
Ireland outclassed Moldova in every department and Murphy was the two-goal hero in the first half.
Shane Long could have had a hat-trick but the Southampton striker is now 25 games for club and country without a goal.
O’neill said: “Centre forwards thrive on scoring goals and Shane remarked to me in the tunnel after the game that he can’t buy a goal at the moment.
“He had some great chances, chances he would have normally taken but they didn’t go in and sometimes your confidence takes a hit from that.”
But O’neill hailed 34-year-old Murphy: “He did really, really well and the second goal was particularly brilliant as he was leaning back when he headed it.”