Goalkeeper Roy Carroll admits he feels like a debutant again as he looks to gain his first Northern Ireland cap in six years against Holland on Saturday.
Olympiakos keeper set to make Northern Ireland return
Goalkeeper Roy Carroll admits he feels like a debutant again as he looks to gain his first Northern Ireland cap in six years against Holland on Saturday.
The 34-year-old former Manchester United shot-stopper has been handed his opportunity after getting the call from head coach Michael O'Neill.
Carroll, who plies his trade with Greek giants Olympiakos, made the last of his 19 appearances in 2006 and was routinely sidelined by previous manager Nigel Worthington following a brief self-imposed international exile.
But he is ready to take his opportunity for the national side with both hands as he gets ready to face the Dutch on Saturday at the Amsterdam Arena.
"It's lovely to be back. It's been a long time," he said.
"What's it been? Six years? Time flies.
"It's nice to get the call-up and get back in the squad and I'm looking forward to Saturday.
"As a young boy what you want to do is play for your country and it's a great feeling.
"If I play or come on it will feel like my debut again, it's been so long.
"I'm the oldest here but I'm still getting to know some of the lads and learning names.
"I'm older now, more chilled out but when you're playing Holland of course there are nerves."
Opportunity
Carroll has lived a somewhat nomadic existence since his most high-profile spell at Manchester United ended in 2005.
He played for West Ham, Rangers and Derby before moving further afield in 2009 when he took the chance to play in Denmark with Odense.
He later traded that for OFI Crete in the Greek Super League and impressed sufficiently to earn a move to Olympiakos.
Carroll's first touch for the Greek champions was a penalty save after coming off the bench in a Europa League clash with Rubin Kazan and he is delighted by the opportunity he has with the club.
"You wouldn't believe how big they are," he said.
"The fans are fantastic; everywhere you go people talk to you about football...even though I don't speak Greek yet!
"It's a big club and the training ground is fantastic. I've been at Manchester United and a team like Olympiakos is like a semi-United for Greece.
"The fans go crazy and it feels like 100,000 people out there. They're in the Champions League next season and hopefully I can fight to be number one."
