Gerry Armstrong is footballing royalty in Northern Ireland and for good reason, too.The 63-year-old played for the likes of Tottenham, Watford and Real Mallorca during his career as a striker and amassed 63 caps for his country during nine years of international service.Armstrong accumulated 12 goals during his time with Northern Ireland but few will ever compare to the one he scored past Spain on June 25, 1982.Northern Ireland sensationally usurped the host nation at their very own World Cup in a game in Valencia that has forever associated Armstrong with the Iberian nation.Since hanging up his boots in the early nineties, he has worked for Sky Sports as a co-commentator for La Liga fixtures but has never fallen out of love with Northern Ireland.

Heat-breaking defeat for Northern Ireland

And who better than Armstrong himself, then, to commentate on his country's crunch World Cup qualifier with Switzerland on Sunday night?

The Euro 2016 tournament finalists were robbed out of a draw in the first leg when Ricardo Rodriguez tucked home a penalty at Windsor Park that should never have been awarded.

It left Northern Ireland needing victory in Switzerland and it was a result that never emerged; a goalless draw proving futile as Xherdan Shaqiri and co. booked their flights to Russia.

Jonny Evans came inches away from salvaging extra time when his late header was desperately lashed off the line by the very man who scored the first leg penalty.

Nevertheless, it was a heroic effort from the visitors and Michael O'Neill who have certainly done their part to emulate the performances of that 1982 squad in recent years.

The commentating Armstrong was certainly happy with what he saw from the gantry, too.

However, fans on Twitter noticed that his work on the game was rather biased. It's to be expected in such a high-pressure game, of course, but the 63-year-old didn't exactly conceal the fact very well.

Twitter has become awash of people laughing at Armstrong for his heavy-handed compliments and praise for incidents that didn't really warrant adulation.

Check out his highlights and some of the finest tweets in response:

Twitter reacts

Harsh, perhaps, but admittedly funny.

The result now leaves the future of O'Neill in doubt with pundits calling for him to try his hand in club football and perhaps in the highest planes of the English football pyramid.

He has certainly done wonders for Northern Ireland and if all else fails, he could always give himself a little ego boost by listening to the Sky Sports commentary back...

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