Conor Bradley will lead out Northern Ireland against Bulgaria on Tuesday night hoping his impressive performances for his country can help him earn more playing time at Liverpool.
The 21-year-old will take the captain’s armband again when Michael O’Neill’s side host Bulgaria, getting to do so in front of supporters for the first time after Saturday’s 0-0 draw against Belarus was played behind closed doors in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary.
It will be another proud moment for the Castlederg-born player, with his mum and sister due to be among the crowd at Windsor Park.
“Everyone knows how much I love coming away and playing with the boys, I just really enjoy it,” Bradley said. “It’s also a good chance for me to get two 90 minutes under my belt because it’s been sort of limited at club level. I really love coming away and getting games…
“I think (captaining Northern Ireland) can only help me. Obviously it was something new for me captaining a first-team team. It’s a good experience for me.”
This has proven to be a break-out year for Bradley. In January he scored his first Liverpool goal with a man of the match display in a 4-1 win over Chelsea, and a month later lifted the Carabao Cup, having started the final – also against Chelsea.
At international level, he is Northern Ireland’s top scorer in 2024 with three goals in six games, and has already reached 20 caps. His selection as captain for these two fixtures reflects the rapid rise he has already made to become one of Northern Ireland’s most important players.
“I always try to focus on what’s next,” Bradley said. “I don’t really like sitting and reflecting and sitting still.
“I just want to keep going, keep progressing and just keep getting better. So I just try to keep going and keep working hard every day, make sure I do the same things and hopefully I’ll just keep going.
“I think (playing for Northern Ireland) just improves me. Obviously, international football’s different to club football, especially when you go away from home and stuff like that. We have to learn how to keep clean sheets and win games when we go away from home.
“It is different, but I really do enjoy the challenge every time I come away, and I relish being able to play two games for my country.”
While vital to Northern Ireland, Bradley is still trying to force his way into a talent-packed Liverpool side, easier said than done when up against Trent Alexander-Arnold for selection.
“Obviously I am still young, I’m not the complete player,” Bradley said. “I still have to get better at defending, better at going forward. I’m just trying to learn everyday off people like Trent and Andy Robertson, who are world-class players; try to take bits of their games and put it into mine.”
Northern Ireland suffered a 1-0 defeat to Bulgaria in Plovdiv last month as a mistake from goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell proved costly, but they go into Tuesday’s match in confident mood after a strong performance in Hungary on Saturday, even if it went unrewarded.
“The important thing at home is to show intent and that’s throughout the game and how you approach it,” O’Neill said.
“We’ve been at our best here when we’ve started with intensity. If you look back at the Luxembourg game (a 2-0 win last month) that was the intent from the outset and we’ve done that with more established teams in the past.
“That is something we have to get into the mentality and psychology of this team, too. We want the game to have intensity, so the onus is on us to create that type of game.”