O’Brien looks on bright side against Dutch
The 25-year-old found himself at the centre of a backlash following the mistake which gifted Charlton an equaliser at St James’ Park and prompted a fans’ protest as Graeme Souness’ side once again failed to win at home.
O’Brien bounced back last week when he scored his first goal for the Republic of Ireland, and will hope to continue his rehabilitation at the Abe Lenstra Stadium as the Magpies take on Heerenveen in the UEFA Cup.
“It was good to get a game with Ireland last week,” he admitted.
“I got my first international goal, and the fact it was the winner made it more special.
“It was a relief to play again after the slip up against Charlton, but I’m not the type of player to dwell on that.”
“Sometimes you go to make a clearance and make a mess of it; other times it goes your way and you get away with it.
“You take the rough with the smooth in this game. Football has a habit of kicking you in the teeth one minute, then it goes well for the next.
“It’s all about how you cope with the disappointments.”
O’Brien is likely to get his chance once again tonight with injured Frenchman Jean-Alain Boumsong cup-tied, and having tasted Champions League football during his time on Tyneside, he is keen to ensure further European action this season.
However, while Gertjan Verbeek’s side may not be among Holland’s big guns, there is no room for complacency in the Magpies’ camp.
“People look at Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord as the top three, but Heerenveen are just behind them at the moment and it will be a tough test for us,” said O’Brien.
But Newcastle have been dealt a double injury blow. Midfielders Kieron Dyer and Nicky Butt have had to withdraw from the squad with flu and an ankle problem respectively, leaving manager Graeme Souness with a new selection problem.
French defender Jean-Alain Boumsong, who is ineligible anyway, travelled to Paris earlier in the week to see an osteopath over a suspected back injury. Peter Ramage has been included in a 19-man squad.
Meanwhile, Middlesbrough midfielders Boudewijn Zenden and Ray Parlour return to the squad for tonight’s UEFA Cup round-of-32 first leg with Austria champions Grazer AK at the Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadium.
Both players sat out Saturday’s goalless draw at Bolton as they each served one-match bans, while centre-back Colin Cooper was also included after being on the sidelines for more than two weeks with a knee injury.
Boro boss Steve McClaren, though, was still without five key players through injury in Mark Viduka, Gaizka Mendieta, Ugo Ehiogu, George Boateng and Malcolm Christie.
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