Baraclough tells Northern Ireland to take positives

Ian Baraclough has told his Northern Ireland side to build on their second-half performance in defeat by Italy when they continue their World Cup qualifying push against Bulgaria in Belfast on Wednesday.

Though the Group C campaign began with a 2-0 defeat in Parma there were plenty of positives for a Northern Ireland side who were the better team for long stretches after the break, but ultimately paid for two first-half lapses.

Baraclough saw enough to offer hope Northern Ireland can push for a first World Cup place since 1986. “These are not the sorts of games we’re going to get judged on,” he said. “We need to take that intensity from the second half into our qualifier on Wednesday against Bulgaria.

“These are the games, against the Bulgarians, against Switzerland, and even against Italy at home. We’ll be buoyed by that second-half performance. We know we need to start games better, but we can create chances. We’ve got a team ethic where I think we need to be on the front foot. We can’t be passive, and when we are we get affected by it.”

Baraclough said Northern Ireland were guilty of that passivity in a first half which saw Domenico Berardi and Ciro Immobile put Italy in control. They had responded well to Berardi’s 14th-minute opener, but gifted Italy the second as Jonny Evans led a charge upfield which left gaps behind for Italy to exploit.

Italy (4-3-3): Donnarumma; Florenzi, Bonucci, Chiellini, Emerson (Spinazzola 75); Pellegrini (Barella 64), Locatelli (Pessina 84), Verratti; Berardi (Chiesa 75), Immobile, Insigne (Grifo 84). Subs Sirigu (g), Di Lorenzo, Belotti, Cragno (g), Acerbi, Bernardeschi, Mancini.

Northern Ireland (4-1-3-2): Peacock-farrell; Smith, Cathcart, J Evans, Dallas; Mcnair; C Evans (Saville h-t), Davis, Mccann (Thompson 78); Whyte (Lavery 64), Magenis (Lafferty 78). Subs Mclaughlin, Kennedy, Ballard, Mcginn, Ferguson, Hazard (g), Brown, Hughes (g). Booked Saville, Thompson.

Referee Ali Palabiyik (Turkey).