Michael O’Neill signs four-year contract extension to remain Northern Ireland manager | OneFootball

Michael O’Neill has his sights set on taking Northern Ireland back to a major tournament after signing a new four-year contract to stay as manager just two weeks after turning down an offer from Blackburn.

O’Neill, 56, finished the season juggling dual roles with Northern Ireland and Blackburn and entered talks with the Championship club over extending his stay at Ewood Park after guiding them to safety.

But having chosen to stay in international football O’Neill has committed himself to the Irish Football Association on fresh terms that run until 2032.

O’Neill had spoken positively of his time with Blackburn but said he ultimately felt he could not walk away from a young, rapidly developing Northern Ireland squad who have their sights set on qualifying for Euro 2028.

“I’m delighted…” O’Neill told the Press Association.

“As much as I enjoyed my time (at Blackburn) and the people there are really, really good people, and Suhail (Shaikh, chief operating officer) was a really good man to work for, I just didn’t feel it was the right thing for me stepping away from the international job at this minute in time.”

O’Neill took the Blackburn job just six weeks before Northern Ireland’s World Cup qualifying play-off away to Italy, a match they lost 2-0 in Bergamo before playing a similarly disappointed Wales side in a friendly that finished 1-1.

“I had a decision to make and I’ve had that decision to make in the past as well,” O’Neill added. “Sometimes it’s not always been as public as that. Those situations do happen.

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Michael O’Neill guided Blackburn to Championship safety while juggling dual roles at the end of the season (Peter Tarry/PA) (PA Wire)

“I felt it was difficult probably after March. I felt the disappointment of the players, missing out on the World Cup, but then saw the response and how a young team played in the Wales game.

“Where I was with that group of players, I just felt the right thing was for me to stay. It wasn’t a decision that was a financial decision or anything like that.

“Blackburn made me a great offer, and I was flattered by that as well, but I just felt that I’d started something here at Northern Ireland that still has a long way to go.

“There’s nothing better than to take your country to a major tournament. I had the experience of doing that and it’s something I would certainly love to do again before my management career comes to an end.”

O’Neill, who led Northern Ireland to Euro 2016, is in his second stint in charge of the national team, having overseen a record 104 matches. First appointed in 2011, O’Neill left for Stoke in 2020 but returned in 2022.

After his new contract was announced, O’Neill named a 23-strong squad for next month’s friendlies against Guinea and France, handing first call-ups to Everton youngster Braiden Graham and Arsenal prospect Ceadach O’Neill, both 18, in a squad which is missing several senior players.

Defenders Paddy McNair, Dan Ballard, Terry Devlin, and Eoin Toal are all unavailable, as are goalkeepers Bailey Peacock-Farrell and Conor Hazard, midfield pair George Saville and Brad Lyons, and forward Dion Charles, while Liverpool’s Conor Bradley remains a long-term absentee.

Liverpool teenager Kieran Morrison keeps his place from March as he hopes for an international debut, as does Blackburn defender Tom Atcheson, who earned his first cap against Wales last time out.