Quote:
O'Neill opens door to defected players
Wednesday, 4 January 2012 15:54
New Northern Ireland manager Michael O'Neill has vowed to give every eligible player a fresh start, including those who have already switched allegiance to the Republic of Ireland.
O'Neill, who starts his two-year tenure on 1 February, was unveiled at the Irish Football Association's headquarters at Windsor Avenue today and immediately set about making his intentions clear.
While it is accepted that Northern Ireland will never have the largest player pool in the world, O'Neill believes he can add to the group that finished fifth in Euro 2012 qualifying under predecessor Nigel Worthington.
The former Shamrock Rovers boss, 42, confirmed he would ask the likes of former captain Aaron Hughes to reconsider their international retirements and cast his eye over those who were out of favour under Worthington.
And, most importantly, he pledged to address the talent drain to the Republic of Ireland.
FIFA rules allow anyone born in Northern Ireland to declare for the Football Association of Ireland, with a series of players doing just that in the last couple of years.
Many have yet to realise their stated ambition of representing the Republic and O'Neill is set to offer those who remain available for his side a return to the fold.
"The vision for me is that we need a bigger pool of players available," he said. "That's no secret. I've never hidden the fact I think it (players switching allegiance) is wrong.
"I think the ruling itself is particularly unfair. What I would say to any young player is think long hard about that decision because, of the players who have made it to date, only Darron Gibson has played a competitive international for the Republic.
"You have to understand where your long-term future is. For players born in Northern Ireland, I think maybe they should aspire to long and distinguished careers for Northern Ireland rather than sitting on the periphery of the [Republic] squad."
One high-profile example is Sunderland's James McClean, who represented the IFA at age-group levels before rejecting Worthington's call-up to the senior side and declaring for the Republic.
That created significant disappointment at the time, but O'Neill is happy to wipe the slate clean for the benefit of the team.
"James McClean is eligible for Northern Ireland so of course he's on my radar," he said.
"Whilst respecting the wishes of the players, I'll be doing everything in my power and my remit to emphasise to them that their long-term futures lie with the Northern Ireland national team.
"Any player who is still eligible for Northern Ireland will come under consideration."
O'Neill, who won 31 caps for his country, also intends on seeing just how certain the likes of Hughes, West Ham's George McCartney and Motherwell's Stephen Craigan are about their retirements.
Fulham defender Hughes, in particular, would be a major boost to the team he led with distinction until his retirement at the end of the previous campaign.
His return would also be welcomed by the Green and White Army, who were denied the chance to say goodbye to Hughes after injury kept him out of a Windsor Park farewell.
"I'll be speaking to all the senior players who have been involved in recent years and Aaron Hughes was a fantastic servant," O'Neill said.
"Would I love to have Aaron available for a squad? Of course I would. Would I love to have George McCartney available? Of course I would. Would I like Stephen Craigan? Yes.
"All these conversations will be had. They'll be done in private and their wishes will be respected, but if they felt they had something to add to the international set-up I'd be delighted to welcome them back."
The final batch of players who can expect to be affected by O'Neill's open-door policy are those who did not feature regularly under Worthington.
"I'll consider everyone that's playing at a good level; look at Dean Shiels at Kilmarnock, Martin Paterson at Burnley, Martin Duff at Burnley," O'Neill added.
"There are a lot of players who haven't been in squads in recent times and they'll all be considered and monitored."
O'Neill's first match in charge comes in a home friendly against Norway on 29 February, by which time he hopes to have his full backroom team in place.