- Northern Ireland have not appeared at a World Cup finals since 1986 

- Slovakia shocked Germany 2-0 in their opening Group A match in World Cup qualifying

- Recommended bet: Northern Ireland to win

Northern Ireland are dreaming of a first World Cup appearance in 40 years and they face a crucial home fixture against qualifying Group A leaders Slovakia on Friday.

Slovakia enjoyed a fantastic start to their campaign, beating Germany 2-0 before a 1-0 victory in Luxembourg, but Northern Ireland are also playing with confidence.

Michael O'Neill's men eased to a 3-1 win in Luxembourg and competed well in a 3-1 defeat to Germany so a victory on Friday would keep them in the hunt for automatic qualification.  

Team news

Northern Ireland have Daniel Ballard, Conor Hazard, Brodie Spencer, Ciaron Brown and Paul Smyth available after injuries. Veteran striker Josh Magennis has been recalled but first-choice goalkeeper Pierce Charles (shoulder) remains sidelined.

Slovakia's Stanislav Lobotka has been ruled out after picking up an injury while playing for Napoli last weekend. Patrick Hrosovsky could replace Lobotka in midfield and left-back David Hancko is a doubt. 

The latest Northern Ireland vs Slovakia odds are available on LiveScore Bet

The stats

Northern Ireland have lost and both teams have scored in three of their last five games.

Isaac Price has scored eight goals in his last nine Northern Ireland appearances.

Northern Ireland scored the first goal in seven of their last nine games.

Slovakia have kept a clean sheet in eight of their last nine victories.

One or both teams failed to score in six of Slovakia's last seven internationals.

Slovakia have scored only one first-half goal in their last five competitive matches.

Prediction

Northern Ireland were missing several senior players for their first two World Cup qualifiers in September but their squad looks in good shape for Friday's clash with Slovakia.

The return from injury of Sunderland centre-back Ballard is a big boost to the hosts' chances of beating Slovakia, who are top of qualifying Group A after two games.

They were impressive in their 2-0 victory against section favourites Germany on matchday one but rode their luck against Luxembourg in their second fixture.

The only goal of the game was scored by Slovakia's Tomas Rigo in the 90th minute and Luxembourg had the better chances, finishing with 11 shots to their opponents' six.

Slovakia are far from prolific goalscorers and they lost 1-0 on aggregate to Slovenia in March's Nations League play-off.

Northern Ireland have been playing with verve under O'Neill, helped by the superb form of West Brom's Isaac Price, who missed an early penalty in the win over Luxembourg but scored against Germany.

Wingers Paul Smyth and Ross McCausland boost the manager's attacking options, along with experienced striker Josh Magennis, and a home win is a tempting bet at odds-against.

Northern Ireland are in good form at home, beating Bulgaria 5-0 and Belarus 2-0 in their last two Nations League matches on their own patch.

Northern Ireland drew 1-1 with Switzerland and defeated Iceland 1-0 in two home friendlies in 2025 and they may well delight the Belfast crowd again on Friday.

Back Northern Ireland to win, available at 5/4 with LiveScore Bet.