Tommy Wright insists Northern Ireland not afraid of 'fast-tracking' young talent and makes 'really bright' prediction

Less than 24 hours after Michael O’Neill’s senior squad impressed during a narrow 1-0 World Cup qualifying defeat to Germany, Wright’s U21s came up against the European powerhouse at The Oval, taking an early lead before losing out 2-1 in the closing stages.

Just like O’Neill, who has shown a willingness to promote young stars onto the biggest stage, Wright is also handing a host of teenagers an international opportunity.

The likes of 18-year-old Aston Villa attacker Cole Brannigan, 17-year-old Ceadach O’Neill and 19-year-old Ryan Donnelly featured for Northern Ireland’s U21s during their recent double-header, which also included a 2-0 win over Malta.

While Wright is determined to collect positive results as Northern Ireland look to qualify for the U21 European Championships, another huge part of his role is promoting talent.

"If you look at the two games we had, they were two different games in terms of against Malta we dominated possession and then when we played Germany, they’re going to have more possession,” he told BBC Sportsound. “We caused them problems.

"When we played England, it was backs to the wall and we didn’t cause them many problems, but for parts of the game we were as good as the Germans offensively...I was really pleased with that.

"It’s a young squad. The aim is to push as many through the age groups as we can...Brogan Sewell was 16 when he came into the camp, he had his birthday during camp, Ceadach O’Neill is 17, Cliftonville’s Joe Sheridan is 17, Cole Brannigan 18, Kieran Morrison 18 – they all got minutes.

"Part of the job is winning games, but a main part of it is giving players experience at international level and preparing them.

"We will have a policy of fast-tracking them if they’re good enough. The U19s had a camp, U17s had a camp, we’ve another camp in November.

"Some of the ones who were with me might drop down to Gareth because he has qualifiers. There’s a lot of good young players and it’s up to us to give them experience.

"It’s important for them that they progress at their clubs because they have them the majority of time and they work extremely hard.

"Just because certain players are at certain clubs at this age, it’s no guarantee they’ll become international footballers.”

At 22, Isaac Price has been one of Northern Ireland’s standout stars over the past 12 months while 21-year-old Shea Charles has established his spot in O’Neill’s midfield.

With an array of young stars coming through their ranks, Wright believes Northern Ireland are well set up for the future.

"I think this young group have a way of playing, it’s effective and exciting,” he added. “They want to play the ball forward early, get into good areas, put the opposition under pressure and they build momentum in games.

"Germany had one breakaway where they should have scored to make it 2-0, but they were camped in.

"Michael probably felt they didn’t believe enough in themselves in the first half, but you’re playing against a top side and you have to give Germany credit.

"The second half was one-way traffic. There’s quality in the team, energy and everybody knows their role. The future is really bright.

"The average age is around 23...if they all stay fit and do well at their clubs, the senior team will be really strong for the next decade.”