by SUNDERLAND’s Dan Ballard believes he is on the right track and has put his injury frustrations behind him after playing some crucial minutes for Northern Ireland.
Having played just 11 minutes for Sunderland since mid-September, Ballard played more than 70 minutes against Belarus on Friday night, scoring the goal that set Michael O’Neill’s side on their way to a crucial 2-0 win.
With Trai Hume suspended and Regis Le Bris having to tinker with his defense at Millwall next weekend, Ballard could be in the starting line-up for the first time in more than two months.
And he is expected to get even more minutes to prepare for his Sunderland comeback when Northern Ireland face Luxembourg on Monday night.
Ballard said: “I think it’s nice to be back from the beginning.
“I haven’t played a lot of football this season so it was really important for me and I think the gaffer just wanted to manage my minutes.”
“It was really positive and now everything is going in the right direction. Hopefully I can build on that and play more minutes.”
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Ballard is not interested in settling for a draw in Luxembourg as Northern Ireland look to complete their Nations League promotion push in style.
After Friday’s win took them two points clear of Bulgaria at the top of Group 3 of League C, a point in Luxembourg would be enough for O’Neill’s side to secure a return to the second tier of international football.
But Ballard wants a third win in a row as Northern Ireland look ahead to next year’s World Cup qualification.
“I think it’s important that we get used to that feeling of winning,” Ballard said. “We have never experienced that as a group. It’s a new group so it’s good for confidence.”
Ballard scored the decisive point in Friday’s game when he headed home from a Shea Charles corner in the 50th minute. Belarus failed to control the ball at the near post, leaving the Sunderland defender with a simple finish.
“It was probably one of my easier ones,” Ballard said. “I didn’t see the ball until late and it was a natural reaction, but it’s really nice to score in front of the fans.”
The goal was Ballard’s third in his last five internationals and his fifth overall for Northern Ireland.
“I feel like I have a natural aggressiveness to attack the ball, especially on defense, and that can be really useful, especially in games like this where it’s difficult to beat teams,” Ballard said.
“A set piece can be so important, that’s why I’ve always worked on it and I enjoy it.”
If Northern Ireland can complete the task on Monday, it will be the first time they have finished top of the group in a competition since qualifying for Euro 2016. The last 12 months brought a number of encouraging results and gave the team a platform for World Cup cup qualification.
“I think it’s nice to go into a game with that confidence,” Ballard added. “We believed we would win this game.
“Initially when I first came into the team (in 2020) we had lost a lot of confidence and it felt like we were going in the wrong direction, but I think that has been reversed now.
“It’s still a really young team with a lot for everyone to learn, but it’s nice to just enjoy these moments in isolation – it’s always nice to win at Windsor.”
