NI World Cup hopes gone from 'improbable to impossible'
Northern Ireland's women's football team faces a near-impossible task to qualify for the 2027 World Cup after a 4-0 loss to Portugal. Manager Michael McArdle acknowledged the difficulty of the deficit while emphasizing the value of experience for younger players.
Why it matters
The match highlights the competitive gap in international women's football and the developmental challenges for smaller national programs.
Michael McArdle admits Northern Ireland's chances of beating Portugal in a 2027 Women's World Cup play-off semi-final have "gone from improbable to impossible" after a 4-0 defeat at Inver Park.
Underdogs heading into the first-leg tie, the hosts were well beaten and face a mammoth task to overturn the deficit in Tuesday's return in Portimao.
McArdle, who took over as Northern Ireland manager in March, felt there were positives in the defeat, but said the scoreline was "sore" and "it hurts".
"It feels a bit harder on us than the actual game produced," added the Scot.
"We're hurting in that aspect. There are lots of positives there, which we'll take and we'll move forward for the longer process.
"But in the shorter term, the tie becomes, from a case of being improbable to impossible now, with the four-goal deficit."
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