Magennis’ return 11 months since his last cap means he is both the most experienced member of O’Neill’s panel and the top international goal scorer in the group.
The former Hull City and Wigan Athletic forward was placed on the stand-by list for friendlies against Sweden and Switzerland and then was not included for June’s games against Iceland and Denmark after hip surgery.
O’Neill said after his omission from last month’s squad that he would never close the door on anyone’s international career and four goals in nine League One games this season has been enough to earn a recall.
“I didn’t think Josh was fit enough, really, and I thought the other strikers were ahead of him from a fitness point of view,” O’Neill said on Thursday.
“But he’s played regular minutes, obviously, since he’s off the back of the operation.
“He scored four goals, which is nice to see and Josh gives us experience and physicality that we maybe don’t have in abundance, particularly at that end of the pitch.”
At 35-years-old, O’Neill added he would be mindful of Magennis’ usage when playing two games in four days.
“I think he knows himself that whatever way Josh is used now, it has to be how far he can he play, if you start him in a game or whether there’s impact off the bench,” he added.
“So those are all things to consider in the selections that we make but, look, it’s nice to have a bit of experience and it’s always nice to have Josh in the squad.”
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