O'Neill upbeat as Northern Ireland stay unbeaten after goalless draw with Hungary

Northern Ireland and Hungary played out a scoreless draw at Windsor Park, a match in which both defences got the better of the attacks. Patrick Kelly struck the crossbar for the home side in the first half, while Isaac Price saw his effort saved by goalkeeper Balazs Toth.

The game featured disputed refereeing moments. After Dan Ballard conceded a contentious penalty in Northern Ireland's previous match in Georgia, captain Shea Charles had a similar penalty appeal turned down in the build-up to Kelly's chance. Manager Michael O'Neill said he had not yet reviewed the incident but joked that referees rarely make decisions in his team's favour.

Hungary's Dominik Szoboszlai, who plays for Liverpool, was largely kept quiet, and the visitors struggled to fashion clear chances of their own. Northern Ireland goalkeeper Pierce Charles faced only one real test, saving a shot from Alex Toth late in the game after a loose clearance.

O'Neill noted that after a roughly 5,000-mile trip from Georgia for the opening fixture, both sides looked tired by the end of the match. He said preparations for the game had been more difficult than usual due to the travel, and felt Hungary grew stronger as the second half progressed.

O'Neill also expressed frustration over the conduct of some Hungarian players, saying several appeared to exaggerate contact during the match. Spanish referee Ricardo de Burgos booked four Northern Ireland players — Ethan Galbraith, Shea Charles, Jamie Donley and Isaac Price — during a stop-start contest, and O'Neill called for such behaviour to be removed from the game.

Northern Ireland's young squad next travels to Slovakia to face Ukraine on Friday in the third match of a demanding four-game run. Despite the challenges, O'Neill described the campaign so far as a strong start in what he called a highly competitive group.