Northern Ireland: Ian Baraclough ends intense international break where he started

The topic was the same, but the mood was altogether different.

This was an international window that started and finished with the Northern Ireland manager talking about key figures who were unavailable for a qualifier double-header that had the potential to bring the curtain down on the country's World Cup hopes.

Less than 48 hours before naming his squad, Ian Baraclough was blindsided by a call from highly-respected first-team coach Austin MacPhee to reveal he was leaving to take up a role with his native Scotland.

There was a less surprising - but no less damaging - call from experienced striker Liam Boyce to say he did not want to be considered for family reasons, while Josh Magennis and Corry Evans were injured with George Saville suspended for the opening qualifier in Lithuania.

It got worse. Much worse. Jonny Evans was named in the squad, though Baraclough admitted from the outset that he had next to no chance of playing, while the day before the trip to Vilnius saw Stuart Dallas pull out for personal reasons.

It appeared the narrative for the window had been set.

• Peacock-Farrell saves another penalty as Northern Ireland draw with Switzerland

• Highlights: NI and Switzerland meet in crucial Group C qualifier

Fast forward just over two weeks, however, and Baraclough's reflections on the triple-header were delivered under much happier circumstances.

He had just watched his side draw 0-0 at Windsor Park against Switzerland in a game in which a hugely impressive first-half performance could have been enough to grab victory, even if they did need a Bailey Peacock-Farrell penalty save to ensure they remained on level terms.

Indeed, given the draw followed an impressive under-pressure 4-1 win over Lithuania and a 1-0 friendly victory in Estonia, the mood in the room was such that he found time for a tongue-in-cheek remark that some of his star players may find it difficult to win their place in the team back.

"Absolutely," he replied when asked if the performances of the likes of Shayne Lavery, Conor Bradley, Ali McCann, Ciaron Brown and Dan Ballard were examples of his mission to "swell" the squad depth.

"And they will all want to be part of the squad next month. It is going to be such a difficult decision to leave people out if players get fit again, but it is a great conundrum for me to have.

"We have been working towards that for over a year and there is more to come, because there are more young players desperate to step up and stake a claim. The pool of players is stronger now, for definite.

"You saw the young players out there tonight, they are not fazed by it and that gives us something to look forward to. We have to show patience, though, let's not expect it all to happen at once."

Liverpool youngster Bradley 'lifted the place'

As snapshots of what Baraclough was enthusing about go, look no further than the tackle executed by Liverpool youngster Bradley on Ricardo Rodríguez.

Soon after coming on for Michael Smith in what was a brave substitution by the manager, the 18-year-old's fully-committed challenge right in front of the North Stand produced a roar from the near-16,000 crowd that was second only to that which greeted Peacock-Farrell's spot-kick save.

It will no doubt not have been lost on the crowd, of course, that Rodríguez was the scorer of Switzerland's controversial penalty in the 2017 World Cup play-off that was so painful for Northern Ireland.

"We have seen a lad just 18 years of age and I had no hesitation in throwing him on as one of our first subs because of the way he has come in and handled himself," Baraclough explained.

"He is way beyond his 18 years and he dealt with the pressure. Near enough a full house, playing his first competitive game and he lifted the place, he energised the crowd.

"We could have put a winger on to play at wing-back but I felt we still had to be solid and he is more of a defender than maybe a Gavin Whyte, Jordan Jones or Niall McGinn."

Positivity and realism

What about the bigger picture, though? This was far and away the most impressive international window since Baraclough replaced Michael O'Neill, but he recognised the need to see such an encouraging performance against Switzerland in the context of Northern Ireland's World Cup qualification hopes.

Sitting third, three points behind the second-placed Swiss with trips to Geneva and Bulgaria looming in October, the former Under-21 boss was both realistic and positive about the chances of reaching Qatar.

"Next month is a big month with two away games, but our away form has been decent. We will go to Geneva in search of three points.

"To put in a performance like that against a top nation like Switzerland, albeit missing a few of their players. gives us nothing to fear."

Missing players. There really was no getting away from them.