Conor Bradley sends Liverpool teammate Florian Wirtz a Belfast reminder after he takes bragging rights

Liverpool ace Conor Bradley said he was left ‘frustrated’ as Northern Ireland lost to Germany

It was a double whammy for Conor Bradley as Northern Ireland suffered defeat in their World Cup qualifier against Germany as his Liverpool teammate Florian Wirtz netted the all-important third goal.

The game was poised on a knife-edge on the hour mark in Cologne after Isaac Price had cancelled out Serge Gnabry’s seventh minute opener for the hosts.

But it was all to turn shortly after as substitute Nadiem Amiri put the Germans back in front on 69 minutes before Wirtz clinched the win with a sublime free-kick three minutes later.

Bradley couldn’t hide his disappointment afterwards as Northern Ireland deserved to take something from the game, and while he conceded Wirtz took the bragging rights back to Anfield this time around, the fullback is planning a response at Windsor Park next month.

“He’ll take the bragging rights tonight but he still has to come to Belfast,” said Bradley when asked about Wirtz.

“Frustrated. It was a difficult night but we feel we should have got more from the game. They are a top side but we matched them really well. Everyone is disappointed.

“In the first half we were brilliant. We defended really well. It wasn’t on the edge of our box either, we pressed them high up the pitch and made it difficult. We’re just all disappointed.

“All three goals are disappointing for different reasons. Especially the second one with the timing. The third one was a fantastic strike but I didn’t think it was a free-kick.”

After two away games on the bounce Bradley is looking forward to getting back in front of the home support again next month.

Both Slovakia and Germany visit Windsor Park and despite the result Cologne the Liverpool ace feels the team are getting better with every game.

“It’s always a privilege to play at Windsor Park. The fans tonight were fantastic, I can’t wait to get home and play in front of them,” Bradley said.

“We’re definitely getting better as a team. We’ve got to keep progressing and keep getting better. We should have got more from the game, there’s still a lot to improve on but we’re going in the right direction.”