International friendly: Panama 0-0 Northern Ireland

Michael O'Neill gave three players their international debuts as Northern Ireland drew 0-0 in Panama City.

Goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell, midfielder Jordan Thompson and striker Shayne Lavery came on as substitutes against the World Cup-bound hosts.

O'Neill, who fielded a strong starting XI, praised his team's display in sweltering conditions.

Panama's Edgar Joel Barcenas came closest to scoring with a first-half header that came back off the crossbar.

The home supporters gave their team an enthusiastic send-off in what was the last home match before making their first appearance in a World Cup tournament.

Panama have a final friendly against Norway in Oslo on 6 June before heading to Russia where their group opponents are England, Belgium and Tunisia.

The hosts left captain Roman Torres on the bench, with the kick-off delayed by 10 minutes due to a host of pre-game ceremonies, including a lengthy firework display.

In the absence of regular leader Steven Davis, West Brom defender Jonny Evans was Northern Ireland's skipper.

He was pushed up into midfield in a side that also featured veteran defender Aaron Hughes who was winning his 111th cap.

"We did not have much time to acclimatise and the conditions were difficult for us," said Northern Ireland manager Michael O'Neill.

"We would have liked to have had more scoring opportunities, but our goalkeeper was not too busy either so I think the draw was fair.

"It would have been nice to win but we probably didn't do enough to deserve that."

Northern Ireland will continue their preparation for the new Uefa Nations League and Euro 2020 qualifiers when they face Costa Rica in San Jose on Sunday.