Northern Ireland’s stay in France may be brief _ the country is among the biggest underdogs of the tournament.
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Tomorrow’s draw for the 2016 European Championship will feature four teams from the British Isles, which has happened only once before at a major tournament-the 1958 World Cup.
The jackpot emphasises the importance of the win over Bosnia last month, and the generous nature of the expanded competition means that 16 of the 24 competitors will advance to the second round, with four of the six third-placed teams advancing to the knockout section.
England’s best possible draw: England, Switzerland, Hungary, Albania.
Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill would love to face host nation France in the opening game of Euro 2016 but would rather avoid Roy Hodgson’s England.
The nations in pots 2 to 4 will be randomly drawn into a position in each group to create the fixture programme for the group stage of the finals.
Robbie Brady leads the Republic of Ireland into the 2016 European Championships in France.
They are in Pot 4, so any one of them could be in England’s group.
Trust us to draw England in the so-called “group of death” first time!
‘When the draw came out for the play-off matches I was thinking, “Don’t get Ukraine, don’t get this, don’t get that”.
O’Neill has overseen a rise from 88th to 30th in the Federation Internationale de Football Association ranking, having galvanised a squad reeling from a disastrous 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign that featured a humiliating 3-2 loss to Luxembourg.
Now banned from encountering Valbuena, Real Madrid star Benzema has stated his hope that he can return to the squad in time for the finals despite being charged by police in the case. “Those are games we’ll reflect on when we go to the finals”, he said.
An alternative plan may be advising the wife and kids that the all-inclusive summer holiday they had in mind for next June or July will not be happening….and good luck if you take that option!
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“I think, if your base is not a million miles from an airport you will be okay, but of course, with security and such things there might be added pressure, so let’s see how the draw works out and where we are”.
