O’Neill was speaking to the media after announcing his squad to face Guinea and France in June friendlies.

Northern Ireland will be without some key players such as Bradley, Sunderland defender Dan Ballard, Portsmouth’s Terry Devlin and Paddy McNair, who helped Hull City win promotion to the Premier League.

The games come at the end of a gruelling season but O’Neill was thrilled by the commitment of his players.

“The commitment is there. I understand that at the end of a long season.

“The players have personal goals within that situation.

“Steven Davis has 140 caps. So you only get that if you turn up. You can’t add to your caps if you’re not there.

“The players know that, and with this group, we hardly ever have a withdrawal on the basis of, ‘I’m tired’. The players who are missing have a genuine injury.”

O’Neill adds that the bond between Northern Ireland’s players mean the squad is “in a good place”.

“With this group, they enjoy being together, so they don’t see it as any type of chore to go away on international duty.

“It’s quite the opposite, to be honest.

“Having spoken to a lot of the players, I think they feel that they prefer coming away with their international team because they’re all around the same age than maybe they do with their clubs.

“I think we’re in a good place with that at this minute in time.”

Jakub Mensik was helped into a wheelchair after collapsing onto the court while suffering from cramps following his brutal victory over Mario Navone in a five-set epic at the French Open.

The 20-year-old Czech and 26th seed fell to his back after beating Navone 6-3 2-6 6-4 1-6 7-6 (13-11) in a fifth-set tiebreak, after four hours and 41 minutes in gruelingly hot conditions in Paris.

After struggling physically earlier in the match and requiring a medical timeout for cramp, Mensik was unable to meet Navone at the net following match point and the Argentinian walked round to shake hands while he was still lying on the clay.

Mensik remained flat on his back for several minutes as the physio was called, followed by a paramedic team. Such was the concern for Mensik that a wheelchair was brought out onto court.

The former Miami Open champion, who along with Novak Djokovic is one of only two players to beat world No 1 Jannik Sinner this year, was able to get to his feet and shuffle off the court to applause before then requiring the wheelchair to exit Court 6.

Mensik, who has previously struggled in five-set matches, is set to play eighth seed Alex de Minaur in the third round on Friday. De Minaur was handed a walkover after the withdrawal of Belgium’s Alexander Blockx, due to an ankle injury.

Mensik had two match points at 5-5 in the fifth set, followed by a further six match points in the tiebreak before eventually converting at the ninth opportunity to win the lengthy decider and reach the third round of the French Open for the first time.

The World Cup 2026 is now just days away with Fifa’s giant 48-team tournament ready for kick-off.

With the final squads being named, teams will now prepare for their first group stage games in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

Excitement is building and history will be made, as players carve out their own legacies to join some of the greatest footballers in Fifa World Cup history.

There will be 104 matches, up 40 since Qatar World Cup 2022, while Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo likely to play on this stage for the last time in their glittering careers.

Here’s how the tournament will unfold across 39 action-packed days:

World Cup 2026 groups

The World Cup will begin in Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium, the site of Diego Maradona’s most famous and infamous goals against England at the 1986 World Cup. It was also the venue for two classic World Cup finals: Brazil’s win over Italy in 1970 which included Carlos Alberto’s iconic team goal to cap a 4-1 win; and Argentina’s 3-2 win over West Germany in 1986, where Jorge Burruchaga grabbed an 84th-minute winner.

Mexico and Canada will host 13 games in each, and the United States will host 78. From the quarter-finals onwards, the US will host all of the remaining matches, with the final in New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium.

What are the World Cup 2026 dates?

The tournament begins in Mexico on 11 June, and concludes with the final in New Jersey on 19 July.

Adam Azim is undoubtedly one of the most gifted fighters on these shores, his speed a thing of beauty as he ruthlessly dismantles lesser opponents.

At 24 years old, he surely has the physical attributes and mindset to reach the pinnacle of his sport, especially with renowned trainer Shane McGuigan in his corner.

Crucially, though, Azim remains acutely aware that talent can only take a fighter so far.

More important is the level of commitment to their craft or, in other words, the way in which one chooses to apply themselves outside of the gym.

It came as an unfortunate series of events when, ahead of his last scheduled outing, super-lightweight opponent Gustavo Lemos pulled out with an injury.

Azim was then set to face Nahir Albright on the same date, January 31, only for a hand injury to rule him out of action.

In order to prevent future injuries, however, the unbeaten contender has placed even greater emphasis on a self-care routine which, he tells Boxing News and other outlets, was somewhat neglected ahead of his last fight.

“One thing I’m very [particular] about is my health. Boxers get injured left right and centre before a fight, but it’s the stuff they do outside of camp [that makes a difference].

“They can go out, eat so much crap and do something stupid. [But], with me, I like to sort my body out before I go into camp. I do a lot of manipulation to my body – ice baths, cryos, hot and cold therapy – and I work on myself even after the fight.”

While giving the impression of a consummate professional, Azim admits that, prior to his 12th-round finish over Kurt Scoby last November, he may have been guilty of indulging in a few too many treats.

As a result, he has since decided to live more like a monk than, say, a typical 24-year-old.

“Before that fight against Kurt Scoby, I was very heavy, and the reason I was heavy is because I ate a lot of deserts. But afterwards, I thought of all the top-level fighters that do a lot of recovery and keep their weight in place. I need to do that [as well].”

Believing he has cracked the code for top-level success, Azim must remain in the win column when he faces Steve Claggett at London’s Wembley Arena this Saturday, headlining his first Boxxer card on the BBC.

After that, a vacant world title shot could be well within reach for ‘The Assassin’, who boasts reasonable No.7 ranking with the IBF at 140lbs.

Placed ahead of him is, of course, leading contender Lindolfo Delgado, who Azim says he “really wants” to fight for Richardson Hitchins’ old belt.

Until then, though, Azim must remain focused on his professional development, navigating the same path his father always hoped he would take.

“My dad’s been there since I was four years old and he’s going to continue to stay with me until I retire. That’s what a father figure is. He had it the hard way when he was growing up.

“He lost his two brothers – one died of cancer and one got murdered in Slough. He’s always kept me on the right path.

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“He said to me, ‘Don’t be like your uncle [who died at 25]. Take your path in the way I want you to go’. Even before my dad’s other brother passed away from cancer at 40, he said to my dad that I’m going to make our family name massive.”

Azim is certainly capable of becoming a household name, making his family even prouder, but first, he must decisively handle former Teofimo Lopez opponent Claggett.

Many boxing fans believe Oleksandr Usyk was just a round away from one of the greatest upsets in heavyweight history against Rico Verhoeven, and now Queensberry Promoter Frank Warren has had his say on the fight.

With just one professional boxing bout to his name, Verhoeven was given minimal chance by most people ahead of his unconventional clash with Usyk at the Pyramids of Giza.

The Dutchman soon proved that he needed to be taken seriously, as his style caused issues for Usyk, who struggled to win rounds and looked off the pace throughout.

Ahead of round 11, it was revealed that two judges had the fight level, whilst one had Verhoeven 96-94 up. In an interview with iFL TV, Warren labelled the scoring as ‘atrocious’, believing the underdog’s performance to have merited a larger margin.

“I actually thought it turned into a really good fight, an enjoyable fight to watch and he was winning it. I had him four or five [rounds] up, I thought that the scoring was atrocious.”

In that penultimate round those scorecards were made redundant, as referee Mark Lyson intervened after Verhoeven eas floored via Usyk uppercut and then put under pressure in the corner.

Continuing, Warren said that a more experienced operator would have given himself some extra time and seen out the round. 

“I think that if he [Verhoeven] had a bit more experience when he went down [he could have survived the round]. I noticed that his gumshield sort of half came out and he got it back in without touching it, he sort of swallowed it back in.

“Anyone with a bit of experience would have spat it out and maybe that would have got him that extra little bit [of time].” 

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Verhoeven has appealled the outcome of the fight, hoping to have the result changed to a ‘no contest’ or force an immediate rematch, though the WBC has confirmed Usyk must have mandatory challenger Shit Kabayel, promoted by Warren, next.

Brazil forward Vinicius Jr has weighed in on the chances of Lionel Messi and Argentina being contenders to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup. La Albiceleste are reigning world champions and will head into the tournament with big expectations.

Lionel Scaloni has yet to name his 26-man squad for the World Cup, with announcement expected to be done in the next 48 hours. And speaking of Argentina’s chances, Vinicius spoke highly of what Lionel Messi and co. can do at the tournament.

The Real Madrid man picked Argentina as one of the favorites to win the World Cup. Being the defending champions will give Argentina great confidence, according to Vinicius.

He also hailed the impact that Lionel Messi will bring to the team. Vinicius admits that the Inter Miami captain always adds something different to his teams and believes that some of the things Lionel Messi does on the pitch is stuff that no one can even imagine.

In an interview on CazeTV (h/t All About Argentina on X), Vinicius commented:

“I’ll pick Argentina too [as one of the favorites of the World Cup], because they were the last champions, they have great confidence and they have Messi.

“He always brings something different, we can never imagine what he might do.”

Argentina are in Group J of the 2026 World Cup alongside Algeria, Jordan and Austria. Vinicius’ Brazil will face Morocco, Haiti and Scotland in Group C.

Scaloni offers update on Lionel Messi’s injury scare before World Cup

During Inter Miami’s 6-4 win over Philadelphia Union, Lionel Messi had to be substituted due to an injury. The Argentine was spotted leaving the pitch while holding the back of his left thigh, which raised doubts over his condition.

Inter Miami head coach offered an update after the game and now, Lionel Scaloni has also reiterated that the latest update isn’t too bad. The Argentina head coach admitted that he would have preferred if nothing had happened but he feels these things are not within his control.

Scaloni stated in an interview with DSports (h/t Diario AS):

“We were watching the [Miami] match at the [Argentina] training complex. We noticed he asked to come off, that something wasn’t right. The early news isn’t too bad.

“Naturally, we would have preferred nothing had happened at all. Now we have to wait and see how he progresses. Above all, he’ll have more tests, I imagine, to confirm that everything is as they’re saying.”

Scaloni also insisted that he’s hopeful of Lionel Messi and others who are facing such physical setbacks to recover in time and give their best at the World Cup next month.

He added:

“Of course, we would have liked him to go into [the World Cup] without any issues, but that hasn’t been the case with him or with most of the players who’ve had physical setbacks.

“They’re not fully recovered. Our goal is to get them back to full fitness and make sure they go into [the tournament] in the best possible condition.”

Argentina face Honduras and Iceland in pre-World Cup friendlies before locking horns with Algeria in their opening game.