Northern Ireland defender Ruairi McConville said the friendlies against Guinea and France are a chance “to impress Michael O’Neill and show him what you can do”.

Manager O’Neill has recently signed a new contract to keep him at the helm until 2032 after turning down a full-time position at Blackburn Rovers, a job he held on a temporary basis at the end of last season while also at NI.

Now, with his full focus on Northern Ireland, he will aim to grow his young squad and build momentum for the Nations League campaign which starts in September.

During both his tenures as Northern Ireland manager, O’Neill has given younger players a chance, including McConville who made his senior debut in 2024.

“The priority for me, it’s just trying to play again and try and keep my place in this team,” McConville told BBC Sport NI.

“It’s another opportunity to impress Michael and show him what you can do and hopefully keep my spot going into the big game on Monday [against France].

“I think missing a few boys at the back, it’s maybe a different feeling about it this time. Again, I’m still just trying to learn as much as I can off the boys here and obviously help the younger ones coming in.”

Nine of the players involved in the World Cup play-off squad who lost against Italy are unavailable for this international window.

As a result, O’Neill has included the uncapped Braiden Graham, Caedach O’Neill and Kieran Morrison the squad.

McConville believes the friendlies are a chance for the younger players to make their mark in the senior squad.

“We are a tight-knit group where you don’t feel out of place to anyone, so we’ll take that as an advantage,” he continued.

“I think we’re a good group and we’re still obviously quite young so the boys can fit in well.

“It’s a good opportunity for them. I think they’ll hopefully get a run out in the games and show what they can do. They’ve already done that in training so far.”