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Image caption,

Conor Bradley was injured in Liverpool's goalless draw with Arsenal

ByAndy Gray

BBC Sport NI Journalist

It was the news Northern Ireland fans were dreading from the moment Conor Bradley fell to the turf and clutched his knee in Liverpool's Premier League draw at Arsenal.

The 22-year-old sustained a "significant" injury to rule him out of the rest of his club's campaign.

For his country, Bradley will also miss the crucial World Cup play-off in Italy, plus the play-off final and will be a major doubt for the actual tournament should NI get there.

It was a cruel blow for the right-back, who is now a key player for both Northern Ireland and Liverpool.

There's no doubt it could have a major impact on Northern Ireland's hopes of reaching a first World Cup finals since 1986.

So how could it affect Michael O'Neill's side for March's play-off?

Who could fill in?

While Bradley will probably be the last player that O'Neill would have wanted to lose for the play-off, there is a small silver lining that right-back is the position where Northern Ireland have the most depth.

When Bradley and Trai Hume burst on to the scene around the same time, there was a conundrum over how to fit two talented full-backs in the same team.

Thankfully, O'Neill has found a way to make it work as Bradley has often been the wide option, while Sunderland's Hume has often been found on the right side of three centre-backs.

With Bradley sidelined, Hume would be a natural fit at right-back, with O'Neill having a number of centre-back options as his disposal to replace the 23-year-old - including in-form Norwich City defender Ruairi McConville.

A versatile defender who can play on either flank or at centre-back is Brodie Spencer, another crucial member of O'Neill's squad.

Now at Championship strugglers Oxford United, the 21-year-old has had his own injury issues but started three of their last five matches.

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Trai Hume, Brodie Spencer, Terry Devlin and Ethan Galbraith are all possible options to replace Bradley

Portsmouth defender Terry Devlin has been a recent regular in Northern Ireland squads, but has perhaps been a victim of the strength on the right side of the defence.

Despite heading over to England as a central midfielder, the 22-year-old has now established himself as Pompey's first-choice right-back in the Championship and his three international caps have all come in that position.

Despite primarily being a ball-playing central midfielder, Ethan Galbraith is another possible option to replace Bradley.

The Swansea City man has often been deployed there at times throughout the season for his club and has done a good job, while he also has experience there at his former club Leyton Orient.

Given his ability on the ball and other defensive options, it seems more likely that the 24-year-old would be retained in the middle of the park, where he can have more influence on the game.

Template from Germany?

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Image caption,

Without the suspended Conor Bradley, this is how Northern Ireland lined up against Germany in October

The World Cup qualifier at home to Germany in October could give a good indication of how Northern Ireland might line up against a leading nation without Bradley.

After a starring role in the win over Slovakia in the previous match, he picked up a yellow card which ruled him out of the Germany game through suspension.

On that occasion, it was Spencer who was tasked with filling in at right-back as Hume retained his spot in the centre of a back three.

The step up in opposition definitely played a role too, but Northern Ireland were certainly less dynamic than against Slovakia, as they missed the drive Bradley offers going forward.

Digging into the numbers, Spencer stacked up well against the Liverpool man. Bradley won four fouls against Slovakia, while Spencer won two against Germany.

Those stats are flipped for fouls conceded, and Spencer made 24 passes with a 67.7% success rate, while Bradley had 52.9% success rate from 39 attempts against the Slovaks.

In the BBC Sport player rater, where BBC Sport readers can have their say on the game, Bradley was top at 8.90 against Slovakia, while Spencer was at 6.68 against Germany - when Ballard was the highest with 7.79.

Albeit away from home, Northern Ireland will be hoping for a similar level of performance to the Germany game - just with a different result.

Bradley's injury history

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Image caption,

Conor Bradley has had a number of injury issues over the past few seasons

Bradley has had an unfortunate injury record despite his short and successful career to date.

After breaking into Liverpool's first team, a back injury sustained in July 2023 kept him out for the first half of that season, and he was sidelined by an ankle injury in March 2024.

He missed almost 20 games of Liverpool's title-winning campaign, and Bradley's pre-season and start of the current campaign was hampered by a hamstring injury.

He also missed three games for Liverpool before Christmas after he came off at half-time of Northern Ireland's final World Cup qualifier over Luxembourg in Belfast.

However, his injury against Arsenal is by far the most significant blow as he faces an extended period on the sidelines.

Leadership loss

Not only will NI miss Bradley's presence on the pitch, but his leadership is also a loss for the play-off.

He wore the armband in both of December's qualifiers, however, losing a captain may not have the same impact as it would in other teams.

Ever since Jonny Evans retired in 2024, O'Neill has resisted naming a permanent captain and has shared the armband around a number of players.

This stems from the young team coming through, so the actual player wearing the armband does not carry the same weight as responsibility is shared throughout the team.

Hume would be the obvious choice to wear the armband in Bergamo, while Shea Charles is another likely candidate.

Paddy McNair and Dan Ballard have plenty of experience in defence and will play a clear leadership role.

Now, with Bradley sidelined, O'Neill will be hoping no more of his key men pick up any injuries between now and March.