'Magnificent' - National press heap praise on 'outstanding' Sunderland star after international display
Sunderland pair Dan Ballard and Trai Hume both featured for Northern Ireland on Monday evening
It was a night of disappointment for Sunderland duo Dan Ballard and Trai Hume on Monday as their Northern Ireland side suffered a narrow defeat at the hands of Germany.
Michael O’Neill’s men battled well against their high-profile opponents, and even had the ball in the back of the net courtesy of Ballard early on, only for the strike to be ruled out and the contest ultimately decided by a Nick Woltemade effort.
For his part, O’Neill was quick to praise his team for their application against a much-fancied visiting side. Speaking after the final whistle, he said: “We’re disappointed. It was a sore loss. I thought in the first half we lacked a little bit of belief with the ball. To be fair, Germany forced their physicality on top of us and it was difficult for us to get any kind of rhythm.
“The goal that was disallowed would certainly have helped us at that point but it is offside and we shouldn’t really be offside in that situation so it’s an error on our part. The goal we lose is a freak goal, we should defend the corner better but it comes off the player’s shoulder and ends up in our net, so it wasn’t even a header.
“That’s disappointing, but in the second half we were terrific, we gave everything and we just couldn’t force an equaliser… It felt like a game that was either going to be decided by a moment of something special or a bit of a freak goal, which is ultimately how it was decided.”
The national team boss also took the time to laud both Ballard and Hume, with the former in particular catching his eye. He added: "I thought Dan Ballard was fantastic for the 90 minutes – he looked like a top, top-class centre-back. Trai [Hume] was great...”
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What else has been said about Dan Ballard’s performance against Germany?
But O’Neill was not the only one impressed with Ballard’s display on Monday night. The Belfast Telegraph labelled the Sunderland man “outstanding” in the headline of their player ratings, before adding: “Had an early goal ruled out for offside. Troubled the visiting defence and also their dangermen, though he was missing for the Woltemade finish. Still, a magnificent performance from Ballard.”
Similarly, the Belfast News Letter wrote: “Had the ball in the net but denied by offside flag, comfortable on the ball and proved commanding at the back with strength and leadership”, while Belfast Live stated that he was a “constant threat in the Germany box”.
As for Hume, the Sunderland favourite was credited for his “brave display”, his “crucial concentration and energy”, and the manner in which he “led by example all night”.
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