Ian Baraclough has been named as Northern Ireland's new manager as the 49-year-old steps up from the Under-21s role. Baraclough was appointed as the successor to Michael O'Neill following interviews this week which also included Stephen Robinson, Jim Magilton, Tommy Wright and Kenny Shiels. Baraclough becomes only the second Englishman to take charge of Northern Ireland, but the Irish Football Association will hope the former Scunthorpe and Motherwell boss offers some continuity following the success of O'Neill. Baraclough's Under-21s narrowly missed out on the play-offs in qualifying for the 2019 Euro Under-21 Championships, having recorded wins over Spain and Iceland on their way to second place in their group. The all-important trip to Bosnia is now set for October 8.

Source: Irish Independent June 27, 2020 18:00 UTC