Northern Ireland hold Hungary to extend unbeaten Nations League start

Northern Ireland maintained their unbeaten start to the Nations League with a 0-0 draw against Hungary at Windsor Park on Monday, leaving them level with Ukraine on four points in League B Group 2. The Irish FA confirmed that both sides have a win and a draw, while Hungary and Georgia each have one point after two matches.

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Michael O'Neill's team followed their 1-0 victory in Georgia with another clean sheet, this time against a Hungary side captained by Dominik Szoboszlai. According to BBC Sport, the visitors did not record a shot on target until the 90th minute. Hungary became the eighth team in Northern Ireland's past 10 home games to leave without scoring; only Germany and Switzerland found the net during that sequence.

Patrick Kelly came closest to breaking the deadlock before half-time. The Irish FA reported that Balazs Toth kept out his chip from around 30 yards before a later Kelly effort struck the bar following a long throw. Isaac Price also sent a shot narrowly over as the hosts sought an opening goal, but their pressure did not produce a lead at the interval.

The defensive performance came without Daniel Ballard, who suffered a hamstring injury in Tbilisi and was ruled out for the rest of the international window, BBC Sport reported. Ruairi McConville took his place alongside Ciaron Brown and Tom Atcheson. O'Neill praised his players' effort afterwards and highlighted their successive clean sheets on returning to League B after two campaigns in League C.

There were opportunities at both ends after the break. Toth gathered a Jamie Donley header and later pushed away a low Price shot. McConville blocked Willi Orban's close-range attempt, while Pierce Charles saved from substitute Alex Toth near the end. The Irish FA's match report recorded 10 attempts for each team, with neither able to turn those chances into a winner.

Northern Ireland's attacking output remained limited despite their defensive success. BBC Sport, citing Opta, put their expected goals at 0.55, their lowest figure in a Nations League match since September 2022. They next face Ukraine on Friday in Trnava, with the teams entering that meeting level on points, before hosting Georgia the following Monday.