Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy paid tribute to Colin Healy tonight after the Celtic man's late arrival proved the catalyst for their 3-0 win against Finland in Helsinki.
Healy, who came on as a half-time substitute, scored his first international goal and set up Graham Barrett for Ireland’s third.
"Colin is a great player," said McCarthy. "He gives me options for many positions. I have spoken so much about him since he first made his debut. He is an excellent addition to the squad.
"I wish we had him during the World Cup but we couldn't do it in the end."
Healy has been linked with a possible move away from Parkhead, but the quietly-spoken midfielder was just glad to have been given a chance to play.
"It's a bit disappointing not to get into the Celtic side every week but it's nice to get a chance with Ireland," he said.
"When you get an opportunity you have to take it and hopefully I managed to do that tonight."
McCarthy said: "Finland put us under a bit of pressure in the first half but we handled it quite well and definitely deserved the win."
"We knew what to expect from them and Jari Litmanen is always capable of creating something.
"I was always going to change the team around but I didn't want to start with my strongest team and finish with an inexperienced one. I wanted to mix it around a bit and fortunately it worked."
International Friendly results
Bosnia-Herzegovina 0-2 Yugoslavia
Bulgaria 2-2 Germany
Croatia 1-1 Wales
Czech Republic 4-1 Slovakia
Estonia 1-0 Moldova
FYR Macedonia 5-0 Malta
Finland 0-3 Rep of Ireland
Hungary 1-1 Spain
Iceland v Andorra (8.30)
Italy 0-1 Slovenia
Lithuania 2-4 Israel
Luxembourg 0-2 Morocco
Northern Ireland 0-0 Cyprus
Norway 0-1 Holland
Poland 1-1 Belgium
Romania 0-1 Greece
Russia 1-1 Sweden
Scotland 0-1 Denmark
Switzerland 3-2 Austria
Tunisia 1-1 France
Turkey 3-0 Georgia
Ukraine 0-1 Iran