Jamal Lewis confident Northern Ireland on right track after victory over Denmark

Jamal Lewis believes Northern Ireland’s win over Denmark on Monday night shows Michael O’Neill is building a side that will once again be capable of qualifying for a major tournament in the future. Their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign turned into a testing and often miserable affair wrecked by injuries as Northern Ireland lost seven of 10 games, but they finished strongly as goals from Isaac Price and Dion Charles secured a 2-0 home victory over Group H winners Denmark. Given what had gone before, the roar that greeted the final whistle at Windsor Park was one of relief as the frustrations of the last eight months were expunged, but Lewis said the result showed they were not far away from the level of some of their rivals.

“Obviously the campaign was disappointing for us,” the Watford left-back said. “We knew Denmark were a top team but we really did believe and still believe there’s not much difference between a Slovenia and a Finland and we wanted to really mix it up and keep battling until these last two fixtures. “We were bitterly disappointed but it was relief from the players and hopefully the fans felt that we put in a lot of effort and have seen it on the pitch. “We just need to bring this into the next games and get that feel-good factor back at Windsor Park, where we’re hard to beat. “It needs to give us belief, it needs to give us confidence. You see the boys that maybe have less caps, that are new in, they just get a good rhythm and a good feel for the atmosphere, for what a big win does for the confidence of the team.” Although one of the more experienced campaigners in what has been a youthful squad in recent months, the 25-year-old Lewis is among the players that have come into the Northern Ireland side since the high of reaching Euro 2016 and the near-miss in qualification for the 2018 World Cup. He was part of the side that fell at the final hurdle in trying to reach Euro 2020 but believes Northern Ireland are close. “A lot of the squad has had a taste of it,” he said. “It’s not a completely new squad. The older boys, Jonny (Evans) and (Steven) Davis and Stuarty (Dallas) are missing but a lot of the core of the team has had a taste of that or been in and around that. “We’ve just got to keep building. The guys who have had the experience like me need to bring it each time we meet up. Then the guys who are collecting experience need to just keep bringing their youth and bringing their resilience and almost that naivety we need to feel like we can beat anyone. “That really helps in a squad. We just need to combine all that together.” In an interview published in Monday’s programme, Lewis spoke about how much he feels he has benefitted from his loan switch to Watford after a frustrating time at Newcastle, and it showed in what was arguably his best performance in a Northern Ireland shirt. His run down the left sparked the move that led to Price’s opening goal on the hour, while another burst of speed helped create the space for Charles’ 81st-minute strike. “It always helps winning, having a clean sheet, as a defender,” Lewis said. “We played in a low block. I like to be on the front foot so it was difficult sometimes, but sometimes you’ve got to defend and help the team out. “With the first goal, I was happy to use my legs to help out and try to beat the press when the game starts to open up. It was about staying in the game. We knew we’d get chances the longer the game went on.”

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