As Michael McArdle sits down for an interview with BBC Sport at Windsor Park, he's as relaxed as they come. The Scot had just announced his squad for the World Cup play-off with Portugal, for what will be the biggest game of his managerial career to date. McArdle has only been in the Northern Ireland hot seat since March, when he was announced as Tanya Oxtoby's permanent successor, but has more than 25 years of experience working in football.
There's a clear passion for what he is doing, as he balances the reality of playing one of Europe's top-ranked sides with the dreams of reaching a first World Cup just months into his new role. But there is one word that keeps cropping up across various topics - family. McArdle was born and bred in Moodiesburn to the east of Glasgow, and still lives there to this day.
He met his wife, Tammy, in the village when they were both on the same paper round at the age of 12, and they have now been married for 28 years. He has three children, Connor, Mya and Cole, and is about to become a grandad for the first time. It's clear how much his family means to him.
But when he talks about family, it's not just in terms of his own life. It is an embodiment of what he is trying to achieve with Northern Ireland. We're all a family when we represent the country," he said.
"That's a family of players and a family of staff, but also as an ecosystem and domestic game. "We're all the one family when we're together and that's a message that will always be strong while I'm at the helm." What will new call-ups bring to Northern Ireland? Elmore and Grant named in Northern Ireland squad If Northern Ireland are to make it to their first World Cup in Brazil then there are a number of hurdles they will need to clear.
It would perhaps surpass even the fairytale of qualifying for Euro 2022, when Kenny Shiels led a squad largely made up of amateur players to the promised land. A change in format has made replicating that feat more difficult, and if Northern Ireland can beat Portugal over two legs then they will face Croatia or, more likely, Iceland. The Portuguese and Iceland have beaten Northern Ireland over the past two years or so - both quite convincingly.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
