Players urging O’Neill to carry on

Oliver Norwood hopes Northern Ireland’s valiant weekend display in Switzerland will persuade manager Michael O’Neill to remain.

The former Brechin City boss will take time considering his future after his team came up just short in their World Cup play-off, when a dubious penalty decision in the first leg ended their hopes of reaching back-to-back major tournaments for the first time in the country’s history.

It felt like the end of an era in Basel on Sunday, where at least four veteran players – Aaron Hughes, Gareth McAuley, Chris Brunt and Jamie Ward – may have pulled on the green jersey for the final time and O’Neill’s own time with Northern Ireland may have reached its conclusion three years before his contract runs out.

The 48-year-old is unlikely to be short of suitors. The Edinburghbased boss fits the bill for Scotland, while vacancies with Sunderland and the United States, where O’Neill spent part of his playing career, may also be alluring.

However, Norwood is banking on O’Neill being convinced that there is still more to come.

The midfielder, on loan at Fulham from Brighton said: “We are devastated as a squad, but I hope we stick together.

“Obviously, we all want Michael to stay. We hope that our performance on Sunday night (showed we) would want him to remain in charge.”