Northern Ireland have never participated in the European Championships before, but they have participated in the World Cup. However, they entered the 1982 Main Event without legendary forward George Best, who had already lost his battle with alcohol. The Manchester United legend failed to achieve anything with the national team in his best years.
Northern Ireland have good reason to celebrate this autumn as their national team qualifies for the first time for the major European Championship in France next summer. Furthermore, his team secured a place after finishing fourth in Group F.
Of course, success is impossible without specific circumstances. Michael O'Neill was lucky to win the lottery. Romania, Hungary, Finland, the Faroe Islands and Greece, who occupy the bottom places, are clearly not favorites in the group and each lose points on a regular basis. The Verdiblancos are the most consistent teams in their group, which earned them the number 1 spot. They took the chance they deserved in France.
Well done to head coach Michael O'Neill and his players, the seasoned sports handicap impressed. Northern Ireland is not the weakest team in the group, but no one expected that they would take this opportunity to take first place in the table. The manager's resources are limited as most of the players come from the lower leagues in England. O'Neal found his balance and organized his team, giving them a chance to break through.
Players show their determination and trust in the coach's ideas and follow his instructions. Northern Ireland have excelled in all competitions and have lost only one, which has not affected their position. O'Neill's men fought for that goal and achieved historic success. Kyle Lafferty deserves a mention for his scoring behavior. The striker sat on the Norwich bench but scored for his country. Kyle's 7 goals are half of the 10 games played by the Verdiblancos. Sports analysis service Bet4Rate named Rafferty one of the heroes of the European qualifiers.
There are no players in the current Northern Ireland squad who can match George Best, but we're sure football legends will be proud of such a remarkable achievement.
