Friday 25 March 2016 14:07, UK
Michael O'Neill was full of praise for Paddy McNair's performance for Northern Ireland during their 1-1 draw against Wales on Thursday.
The 20-year-old Manchester United defender has played just nine first-team games for the Reds this season, often as a substitute, but turned in a solid display in Cardiff.
He played a part in the build up to Craig Cathcart's goal and the Northern Ireland manager said: "I was really pleased with him.
"He's just 20, not played a lot of first-team football with Manchester United and typically when he plays for Manchester United he plays at centre-back or sometimes as a full-back.
"But I think his best position is where we played him [a holding midfield slot just behind Steven Davis and Oliver Norwood].
"He was a physical presence but he showed his quality on the ball. He just needs to get used to playing at this level. I enjoyed him in there in that midfield with Davis and Norwood.
It's a huge step up and I thought he handled it very well.
"It was encouraging to see him play as well as he did for as long as he did. If you look at Paddy's games in recent weeks, they would have been development games for Manchester United. So it's a huge step up and I thought he handled it very well."
O'Neill was also happy with QPR's Conor Washington who collected his first international cap alongside Kyle Lafferty in attack.
He added: "He's got nothing to be disappointed about in terms of his performance.
"He worked hard, was up against a top-class centre-back in Ashley Williams and he will get more opportunities before the summer.
"He's got pace and is powerful and he doesn't given defenders a minute, which we need.
"Our strength is in our collective work-rate which comes from our midfield three. Conor fits into that mould of a player because of his desire to play, his energy, his work-rate and, as we've seen in club football, he's capable of scoring."
