O'Neill: 'Shayne Lavery has the attributes of a perfect NI centre forward'

As Linfield progressed to the playoff phase of the Europa League by beating Sutjeska, young striker Shayne Lavery stole the show with a man of the match performance.

The 20-year-old terrorised the Montenegrin defenders with his direct style, leading to one of the back four getting sent off as they struggled to handle his pace and power.

Lavery also scored the standout goal of the game, a long-range finish after robbing the goalkeeper of possession after he had left his box.

Watching in the stands was Michael O'Neill, who's already capped Lavery at senior level in a goalless draw with Panama in 2018.

"He has all the attributes. He's almost the perfect Northern Ireland centre forward, once he grows a wee bit. He works very hard, and we've always had a front player that works hard.

"He has an eye for a goal, too. The biggest thing is that he can get goals out of nothing. He's done it for the 21s too. It's a real asset to have," said O'Neill.

Lavery moved to Linfield from English Premier League club Everton. He was unable to break into the first team, and briefly spent time on loan at Falkirk.

"He probably stayed at Everton a bit too long, and he hasn't played an awful lot of club football in the last two years and he's had one or two injuries. The most important thing for Shayne way to come somewhere he can play.

"He just needs to put away the disappointment of leaving Everton and just look at this at the next phase of his career. I'm sure he'll go on to progress from here. Shayne should be playing in full-time football in England or Scotland," said O'Neill.