Career
He has also represented Northern Ireland at under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels. Manchester United
McNair was first discovered by Manchester United"s Northern Ireland-based scout, Tony Coulter, when McNair was 12, and began travelling to train with United during his school holidays. He eventually signed for the club in 2011, having impressed the club scouts in a midfield role for Ballyclare Colts, but was later converted into a defender by United youth coach Paul McGuinness.
While making the transition from midfield to defence, McNair was frequently compared to Michael Carrick by McGuinness.
= 2014-2015 season McNair made his senior debut for United on 27 September 2014 against West Ham United in a 2–1 victory in the Premier League at Old Trafford, starting the game due to an injury crisis in defence. On 4 January 2015, McNair was in the starting line-up for a FA Cup third round tie with Yeovil Town which concluded with a 2–0 result, playing as a right-back in a 3–5–2 formation.
He started again in the same formation and role for a later round of the tournament against Cambridge United that ended 3–0. Following his impressive performance, Van Gaal publicly praised McNair and claimed that he could go on and establish himself as the new Gary Neville, suggesting he could be a regular in that position for the next decade.
On 10 February 2015, he signed a new contract with Manchester United, keeping him at the club until June 2017.
On 28 November 2015, after being kept out of the starting lineup by the consistency and form of Manchester United"s back four, McNair made his first start of the 2015-2016 season for Manchester United alongside fellow teammates Daley Blind and Chris Smalling in a three-man defence against Leicester City. The match ended in a 1–1 draw. On 4 November 2014, McNair was called up to the Northern Ireland senior team for the first time, ahead of a Union of European Football Associations Euro 2016 qualifying match away to Romania, but did not play.
He made his debut on 25 March 2015 in a friendly against Scotland at Hampden Park, playing the entirety of a 1–0 defeat.
On 8 October 2015, McNair was drafted into the starting line-up for a Union of European Football Associations Euro 2016 qualifier match against Greece. Northern Ireland went on to secure a decisive 3-1 victory, qualifying for the competition, a first major tournament the team would have qualified for in thirty years.
After the final qualifying match, a 1–1 away draw with Finland on 11 October 2015, McNair remained in a Helsinki hospital due to concerns of a ruptured liver. On 24 March 2016, McNair was selected in the starting line-up for an international friendly against Wales, which subsequently ended in a 1–1 draw.
Notably, McNair was deployed in a holding midfielder role instead of his more conventional position as a central defender.
Following his display in the match, Northern Ireland head coach, Michael O"Neill, "believes midfield could be where McNair"s future lies".
