Michael O’Neill looks to battle harden his young NI side as the Finals countdown begins in earnest against Sweden

And that’s why O’Neill is happy to have a testing friendly away to Sweden on Tuesday night and another one in Denmark in June before qualifying in Group A kicks off with September trips to Luxembourg and Germany.

The 55-year-old wants his players battle hardened for that double header, knowing full well if the team can hit the ground running, it may take them all the way to America, Canada and Mexico in 2026.

Northern Ireland are already looking good for a Play-Off via their success in the Nations League last year but O’Neill is not a man who leaves things to chance.

So, he will be doing all he can to lead his young side to runners-up spot in the qualifying group that contains Germany, Slovakia and Luxembourg to guarantee a Play-Off or, better still, stun the football world by topping the table and reaching the tournament automatically.

It is appropriate we are in Sweden, home of rock band Europe. You know their most famous song, don’t you?

Well, we can play around with it a little because Northern Ireland are on The Finals Countdown.

After playing under the roof in the imposing Strawberry Arena in Stockholm, O’Neill’s side will only have two more friendlies in June in Denmark and at home to Iceland before the World Cup starts, so he feels these matches really matter even though there are no points at stake.

To add to the promise of performances and results in 2024, Northern Ireland started 2025 with an encouraging 1-1 draw in Belfast against Switzerland, ranked 20th in the world, on Friday.

Sweden are 27th and will be determined to show that is a true reflection of their ability on the back of a shock 1-0 loss in Luxembourg at the weekend that has not gone down well here at all.

Manager Jon Dahl Tomasson has demanded a different Swedish team against Northern Ireland with O’Neill expecting the players in yellow and blue to produce a strong display ‘and we have to be ready to deal with that’.

Trai Hume would have helped on that score but the defender is back with Sunderland, adding to a list of notable absentees through injury — Conor Bradley, Daniel Ballard, Ali McCann, Eoin Toal and Dion Charles.

“Trai came into the camp with a hip issue,” explained O’Neill.

“He had not really been training with Sunderland, just playing games and getting through games and he felt quite sore after the game on Friday so, rather than put him through that again, we felt it was better to send him back to the club and have that investigated.

“It is not something we want to drag on or for Sunderland to drag on because they have a lot to play for and we would not want him to come here and subsequently miss the games in June as well.”

Much of the talk about this match has centred around Newcastle’s Alexander Isak, who will spearhead the Sweden attack.

“I’ve watched him quite a bit at Newcastle,” said O’Neill.

“The difference from when he came into the League to now is quite significant. He had great moments in games in the early part, but now he’s influencing games.

“We’ve seen him as a striker right at the top of his game, there’s a lot more in his game, his timing is exceptional. He tends to be able to stay out of physical contact because he’s a very clever player but very technical as well with some of his finishes.

“He’s a player everyone is talking about not only in the Premier League but across Europe as well and he’s had a really strong impact.

“For us, I think it’s how we handle him as a team. I also think his role within the Sweden team is different to how he plays for Newcastle. We have shown the players that but it’s how we are as a team without the ball that’s the most important thing. Hopefully we can give him a quiet night.”

Ronan Hale would love an evening to remember for him. The Ross County striker didn’t feature in the draw with Switzerland following his international transfer from the Republic of Ireland so will hope to make his senior Northern Ireland debut this time around.

Asked if it was a difficult call not to play the ex-Cliftonville star at Windsor given the lengthy process in bringing him into the fold, O’Neill said: “The player has made an international transfer. That is what it is.

“As I said to Ronan when he made that decision, ‘all I can promise you is that I will monitor you playing for your club’ the same way as with Jamie Donley. I can’t promise you’re going to win 40 caps and be an international for 10 years.

“What will affect that is the competition for places and how the players are playing. Your club form dictates your selection for international football, and then when you come away it’s important... look, whether Ronan starts or comes into the game, this is just his first trip.

“Hopefully he’s got many more trips ahead of him so it’s not something I’d do just because a player went through an international transfer.”

Two players who did make their first appearances for Northern Ireland on Friday as substitutes were Tottenham’s Donley, fresh from his international transfer from England, and Portsmouth’s Terry Devlin, with O’Neill delighted by their contribution.

Both should see more action in Stockholm.

It will be intriguing to see if Conor Hazard is in goal after another eye-catching display from teenager Pierce Charles versus the Swiss.

Minus Hume, Paddy McNair, Ciaron Brown and Brodie Spencer could be joined at the back by Ruairi McConville or Aaron Donnelly while, further forward, captain Shea Charles, Ethan Galbraith and Isaac Price will retain their starting spots after superb performances on Friday.

Other interesting selection issues revolve around George Saville, Paul Smyth and Lee Bonis, who started the Swiss friendly. Could Justin Devenny, Devlin and Donley come in? Hale, Jordan Thompson, Brad Lyons, Callum Marshall, Dale Taylor, Ross McCausland and Kofi Balmer are other options for the boss.

Whoever plays, given the desire of Sweden to right their weekend wrongs, it will be a serious examination for Northern Ireland’s young guns.