International friendly: Northern Ireland v Switzerland

Venue: Windsor Park, Belfast Date: Friday, 21 March Time: 19:45 GMT

Coverage: Watch on BBC Northern Ireland & iPlayer; listen on BBC Radio Ulster & Sounds; live text coverage & in-play clips on the BBC Sport website & app

The combination of topping their Nations League C group in November and being drawn in a four-team World Cup qualifying group means Northern Ireland will go 10 months without a competitive game.

But, as manager Michael O'Neill attempts to plot a path to what would be a first World Cup in 40 years for his side, friendly fixtures this month and in June will be valuable for their preparations.

With Switzerland in Belfast on Friday night and a trip to Stockholm to face Sweden on 25 March, the first two games will see the manager's young side come up against a higher standard of opposition than they faced in the autumn too.

BBC Sport NI looks at the key questions to be answered during the upcoming double-header.

As has so often been the case since Kyle Lafferty's goals fired Michael O'Neill's side to Euro 2016, Northern Ireland are building towards the World Cup qualifying campaign without a central focal point in their attack.

With Josh Magennins only on standby, the most prolific member of O'Neill's squad for these games is centre-back Paddy McNair with seven international goals.

Indeed, after Dion Charles pulled out through injury on Tuesday, the five forwards remaining in the panel have zero international goals between them, although two have yet to make their Northern Ireland debuts.

The Fifa transfers of former under-age internationals Ronan Hale and Jamie Donely, from Republic of Ireland and England respectively, offer two intriguing new options.

Former Cliftonville striker Hale hit the ground running in the Scottish Premiership after his summer switch to Ross County and, while more accustomed to a deeper role, Tottenham Hotspur's Donely has still found the net six times while on loan at Leyton Orient this year.

They are not the only players to have been among the goals this season, either.

Hale, Donely, Lee Bonis, Callum Marshall and Dale Talyor have netted more than 40 times combined for their clubs in 2025-26.

Can they transfer that form to the international stage?

The omission of Josh Magennis from the squad is not just significant for leaving McNair as the squad's top scorer.

The San Diego FC defender is now also the sole player to feature at Euro 2016 still in the panel. With 78 caps, the 29-year-old is by far the most experienced member of the squad. Millwall midfielder George Saville is the only other player with more than 40 caps.

Indeed, excluding McNair, the other 24 players in the party have an average of under 11 caps with four players - Ronan Hale, Jamie Donely, Terry Devlin and Kofi Balmer - yet to make their debuts.

O'Neill's second spell in charge has featured a striking changing of the guard.

Since the first game of his return in March 2023, Steven Davis, Jonny Evans, Stuart Dallas and Craig Cathcart have all retired, in Evans' case just from the international game. That quartet accounted for 382 international caps.

Throw Corry Evans and Magennis into that equation and the tally sits at 536.

In their stead, a new core has emerged with 14 of the players in the squad for these two games aged 23-years-old or younger.

Plenty have already impressed in the Nations League but, with Switzerland and Sweden 20th and 27th in the Fifa World rankings respectively, the opposition this month will be of a considerably higher standard.

How will O'Neill's youthful core manage the jump in quality?

Since Evans' 107th and final cap against Spain in June, O'Neill has had four different captains in seven games.

Daniel Ballard wore the armband in the summer friendly against Andorra, before Trai Hume was handed the honour for the opening two games of last year's Nations League campaign.

Conor Bradley led the team out for the first time in the October games against Bulgaria and Belarus before Shea Charles did likewise to see the campaign to a conclusion a month later.

During O'Neill's first spell in charge, Steven Davis was a long-serving skipper but the manager has signalled his happiness to continue to rotate in the hope that a group of leaders can be established.

With Ballard and Bradley both missing through injury this month, and the latter tipped as the most likely permanent captain should O'Neill name one, will we see another new face in the role for these games?

Birmingham City goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell, who has 48 caps, has been left on the standby list this time around.

After losing his place to Pierce Charles, 19, through injury in October, the former Leeds and Burnley keeper has not featured since, while he has been struggling for minutes at his League One club of late.

Charles kept three clean sheets in his first three caps and impressed with his distribution from the back too.

The Sheffield Wednesday man perhaps could have done better with one of Luxembourg's goals in the 2-2 draw last time out but the main sticking point for O'Neill will likely be a lack of regular football at Hillsborough.

Plymouth's Conor Hazard, in contrast, has been number one for the Pilgrims in the Championship and impressed against Premier League opposition during their FA Cup run.

The 27-year-old has had to be patient throughout his international career, winning just eight caps since his debut against Costa Rica in 2018.

Will the benefit of regular football see him get an extended chance in this window?