Ian Baraclough picks his first squad as Northern Ireland manager

Oxford midfielder Mark Sykes has switched his allegiance to the Republic of Ireland

Oxford midfielder Mark Sykes will play no part for Ian Baraclough’s Northern Ireland squad after pledging his allegiance to the Republic of Ireland. File photograph: Getty Images
Oxford midfielder Mark Sykes will play no part for Ian Baraclough’s Northern Ireland squad after pledging his allegiance to the Republic of Ireland. File photograph: Getty Images

Northern Ireland manager Ian Baraclough has named his first senior squad for next month's Nations League games against Romania and Norway.

Baraclough, who replaced Michael O’Neill in June, has named a 26-man squad for his first game in charge in Bucharest on September 4th and against Norway at Windsor Park on September 7th.

Oxford winger Joel Cooper has received his first call-up into the senior squad, while skipper Steven Davis is hoping to equal Pat Jennings' all-time appearance record in the upcoming matches.

Northern Ireland face Bosnia and Herzegovina in their Euro 2020 qualifying play-off semi-final in October.

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Oxford midfielder Mark Sykes, who Baraclough worked with during his role as Northern Ireland Under-21s manager, will play no part after pledging his allegiance to the Republic of Ireland. He was included in three Northern Ireland squads by former manager O'Neill but did not make his senior debut. Republic of Ireland boss Stephen Kenny will also name his squad for games against Bulgaria and Finland on Monday.