Callum O’Dowda says Martin O’Neill made him feel like a better player than he is.
The Nottingham Forest manager handed O’Dowda his debut for the Republic of Ireland in October 2016, and now the Bristol City winger has praised O’Neill for the impact he made during his time as manager as he gets ready to face Denmark and Gibraltar this weekend.
O’Dowda is preparing for Friday night’s European Championship qualifier in Copenhagen under new Ireland boss Mick McCarthy, but has come out in support of his former gaffer for aiding his progress on the international stage.
"I think with Martin it was more that he made me feel like a better player than I actually am,” said the Robins star.
“That's what I noticed. I would be going out to training probably thinking that I was better than I was.”
O’Neill left his role as the Ireland manager in November after suffering relegation from their Nations League group.
Despite that criticism, O’Dowda credits O'Neill with making a real difference to his game and helping to find his best form.
“So that's probably the best way to sum it up, really. Yes, he did get a lot of criticism, which I knew about,” he said.
“I think that you are going to get that when results are not going your way. But he was, in my eyes, a very good manager.
"I felt that Martin’s man-management skills were very good and he probably got the best out of me.
“My game against Poland is what I'm about, even though I was playing centrally and not wide, I thought it was one of my strongest games for Ireland.”
