Celtic man Lee O’Connor can’t be accused of not being a team player – given his comments in the aftermath of his senior Ireland debut.
The teenager earned his first cap in his country’s 3-1 friendly win over New Zealand on Thursday night. O’Connor put in a strong defensive display from right-back and also helped to contribute in an attacking sense – laying on the third goal for Callum Robinson.
It’s not yet clear whether the former Manchester United man will continue as part of the Ireland setup ahead of Monday’s crucial qualifier against Denmark. His usual under-21 side also have an important match against Sweden, and O’Connor insists he’s happy to do whatever he’s told.
He told the Irish Mirror: “You’d have to ask Mick [if I’m in contention for Denmark]. I’m over the moon with tonight and I’m happy to go back and play for the Under-21s.
“We’ve got a very big game against Sweden on Tuesday and my focus is on that now.”
O’Connor can use Ireland experience to help him at Celtic
It’s refreshing to see that O’Connor is staying humble despite the buzz of getting his first full cap at such a young age. Many teenagers may have seen the stars after such a display – and hoped that their days in the youth side were over.
O’Connor may feel like that personally but he’s still saying all the right things. The defender seems to have a mature head on his shoulders for such a young age.
It is that kind of temperament that is likely to aid him in his pursuit of a starting spot at Celtic. He has a few players ahead of him in the various defensive positions but he is likely to get some sort of an outing before the end of the year – given the sheer volume of fixtures we play.
If he can grasp that opportunity like he did in London then we should be on to a winner.
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