Encouraging the cheap fifa coins Irish to dream is the fact that this EURO will be the first with 24 places up for grabs, with the top two in each section qualifying automatically. O’Neill’s side currently occupy one of those berths in Group F and sit just a point behind leaders Romania. Better still, they already hold four and eight-point cushions over Hungary and Finland respectively, with the struggling Greeks a further two behind.

“When the draw came out, and with the extra places available, the players all knew how big an opportunity this was,” admitted McGinn. “The manager made that clear to us too - that this was our best chance to qualify for a major tournament in a long time. We’re not getting carried away but there’s a massive prize at the end of this process and we all want to grab it. And the momentum’s with us and Romania at the moment.”

Something will have to give, however, when the group’s  dominant duo lock horns in Belfast next month. Lose to the Romanians on 13 June, and Northern Ireland know that their rivals will smell blood. Win, though, and McGinn and his team-mates will be within touching distance of France 2016.