Uefa Nations League Group 2B: Republic of Ireland 0 England 2
From Brendan Crossan in Dublin
IN truth, Ireland never stood a chance against England in Dublin on Saturday evening. Three training sessions under the new coach and a fistful of hope were never going to topple a nation ranked fourth in the world.
But it was the manner of Saturday’s Uefa Nations League defeat that continues to usher this Irish team to the fringes of sporting conversation in the country.
Apart from an energetic and decidedly muscular opening 10 minutes from the home side – which yielded a scoring chance apiece for Jayson Molumby and Sammie Szmodics - everything after that was powder puff.
Outnumbered in midfield and outclassed all over the pitch, this was a chastening first game for Heimir Halgrimsson as Republic of Ireland manager.
From the outset, the whole point of the exercise was for Halgrimsson’s team to be solid at the back in a conservative 3-5-2.
But Ireland’s back five were as sturdy as tissue paper. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jack Grealish and Anthony Gordon ripped the home defence to pieces.
The Icelandic was right when he said afterwards that the two first-half goals Ireland conceded “should never happen” at any level of football.
If England, under the interim management of former Ireland international Lee Carsley, were nursing a Euro 2024 hangover, it didn’t appear so.
As much as the beaten Euro finalists were good in the opening 45 minutes, Ireland were woeful.
Everyone could have guessed the outcome of Saturday’s Anglo-Irish showdown, but nobody imagined that Declan Rice and Jack Grealish – the two panto villains for the evening – would score England’s goals.
Rice, “out of respect”, didn’t celebrate his side’s clinical opener on 11 minutes having played three times for Ireland back in the middle of the last decade.
Grealish also had a three-year association with the host nation at underage level before declaring for his country of birth.
When Grealish finished off a flowing one-touch move in the 26th minute, the Man City schemer made sure he celebrated with the travelling supporters behind the goal.
The plus points in a disastrous first half for Ireland were Seamus Coleman’s due diligence in defence, Chiedozie Ogbene and Sammie Szmodics’ desire and work-rate and Jayson Molumby wanting to at least leave a mark on some of his illustrious opponents.
The rough consensus was that Ireland improved in the second half, but even Halgrimsson wasn’t entirely convinced of that sympathetic theory.
“It’s easy when the opponents are winning 2-0, you don’t know if it is because they back off or we did better.”
What won’t be lost in that rudderless first half performance was the role the FAI played in it.
Halgrimsson was only appointed in July. Had he arrived earlier, the 57-year-old former dentist would have had two international windows under his belt and Saturday evening mightn’t have been as demoralising as it turned out to be.
But, in their wisdom, the FAI ceded to Halgrimsson’s request to delay his appointment so that he could have one last hurrah with Jamaica at the Copa America.
The FAI effectively picked up the tab for those three group defeats Jamaica suffered to Mexico, Ecuador and Venezuela and in doing so threw away any prospect of challenging England in their opening Nations League game.
What transpired in Dublin on Saturday evening was not a surprise - a shapeless and leaderless performance from Ireland in front of 50, 359 supporters who deserved better than three days of microwaved preparations in Abbotstown.
Guided heavily by assistant John O’Shea, who was in interim charge of the team during the FAI’s increasingly frantic search to land a new manager, Halgrimsson would have learned a huge amount on the sidelines on Saturday.
Matt Doherty was relieved of his wing-back duties in the 58th minute and proved once again that, as a defender, he doesn’t sense danger quickly enough.
While everyone was drooling over Alexander-Arnold’s defence-splitting pass that led to England’s opening goal, Halgrimsson was probably observing how easily Doherty allowed Anthony Gordon to peel away from him.
Halgrimsson withdrew Doherty and put Ogbene in the wing-back role. The new boss would also have learned that Adam Idah is some way short of playing the lone striker’s role at international level.
In midfield, Will Smallbone didn’t get his foot on the ball but, as was the case against Greece in Athens last year, he suffered by Ireland’s lack of numbers in the middle of the field.
And if Callum O’Dowda can’t dislodge 32-year-old Robbie Brady – a declining force at left wing-back – when will he ever dislodge him?
Halgrimsson insisted that it wasn’t necessarily the 3-5-2 – or 5-4-1 as it played out – but a “lack of confidence and initiative” by the players to make the system function.
“When we play five at the back, again talking about initiative, sometimes you have three centre-backs against one striker.
“You need one to step up [into midfield]. Once they play better together, they grow in confidence to take the initiative to say we don’t need three players and I’ll step into midfield.
“Then if that doesn’t happen, the coach needs to change the formation, take one from here and put in there. We have versatile players so could move players around.
“But I think it was maybe a lack of confidence, we were more passive than active when we were defending.
“I felt that was the biggest problem, not to believe and take the decision to go… and then everybody was waiting to see what was going to happen.”
Playing at the base of the Irish midfield, the all-action Molumby got physical with Grealish, Gordon and Kobbie Mainoo – but he’s not the midfield builder.
Ogbene and Szmodics were the shafts of light in the capital on Saturday evening with the pair carving out Ireland’s best chance in the second half.
The day itself was all sadly predictable. An Irish team seriously under-cooked in preparation terms against a well-oiled England team that can be classed as among Europe’s elite.
The yawning gap was deflating for Irish fans. When Robbie Brady hammered the ball up field in the 50th minute to absolutely nobody, the home supporters booed loudly.
It wasn’t Brady’s fault that he had no short or long pass options.
In that moment, you wondered about the direction of travel for this Ireland team.
The Stephen Kenny way of trying to modernise and play through the lines - a philosophy that didn’t exactly improve results - was ditched the moment Halgrimsson was appointed.
On Saturday evening, Ireland were defensively loose, they had no control in midfield, they lacked bravery in possession and there was a worrying disconnect between defence to midfield to attack.
There was no discernible system of play. No identity.
That’s what happens when you appoint a new manager so late in the day.
Or perhaps this is the way it’s going to be for Ireland for the foreseeable future – where the team’s aspirations of reaching major tournaments mothball and decay no matter what Halgrimsson tries to do to put a bit of shape on them.
Greece are up next tomorrow night in Dublin. A home win seems a stretch.
It could be worse for Halgrimsson though.
He could be poor Lee Carsley having to explain away to the English media about his decision to not sing ‘God Save The King’ more than England’s polished display under his watch. Perspective.
IRELAND RATINGS
Caoimhin Kelleher: Kept the score respectable with a string of brilliant saves, three of which came in the closing stages. No chance for England’s two first-half goals. 7
Matt Doherty: The Wolves man showed a bit of attacking spark in the opening exchanges, but he was on the back foot thereafter. And Doherty is not the greatest in that position. Caught napping when Anthony Gordon peeled off his flank to set up the first goal. 3
Robbie Brady: The fact that Ireland are still trying to get a tune out of one of their Euro 2016 stars says everything about the squad’s scant resources. Still, the Preston NE man played a canny game against Bukayo Saka. 5
Seamus Coleman: Ireland’s captain was withdrawn after 56 minutes due to an ankle injury. Battled gamely against Jack Grealish and Anthony Gordon at different times, not helped by Matt Doherty’s lack of alertness down his side at times. 6
Nathan Collins: Moved to the right of the back three in the second half and got forward. Made a brave block on Harry Kane in the first half before Declan Rice followed up to score. 5
Dara O’Shea: Puts in a defensive shift but you like to see him take more responsibility in possession. Being a right-sided centre-back playing on the left doesn’t help. 5
Jayson Molumby: Technically loose at times and shot wildly over the bar in the second half when under no pressure – but offered physical resistance and couldn’t have given much more. 6
William Smallbone: Fouled several times in the opening half and was way off the pace. Outnumbered. Outclassed. Struggled to make any impression. 3
Chiedozie Ogbene: Ireland’s best player. Ipswich Town’s new signing has some size of heart. Showed bravery in possession – which was a rare commodity in Irish ranks – and set up Sammie Szmodics for Ireland’s best chance in the second half when he moved to the wing-back role. 7
Adam Idah: It’s easy to say the big Celtic striker didn’t get any service but he never imposed himself on the game. 3
Sammie Szmodics: One of the few shafts of light in the current Irish set-up. Had two good efforts on England’s goal. Resourceful and a worker-bee with quality as well. 6
Subs:
Jake O’Brien: Assumed the central role of the back three. Physical but needs more games at this level to see what he’s got. 5
Jason Knight: Lively and did brilliantly to cut out an Anthony Gordon run. 6
Alan Browne: Filled in for Robbie Brady at left wing-back and found Bukayo Saka still lively right to the end. 4
Kasey McAteer: Making his debut, the Leicester City man assumed a left sided role and put himself about. 5
Evan Ferguson: Got the last few minutes but nothing came off for him. 4
ENGLAND RATINGS
Jordan Pickford: Made a slight meal out of Sammie Szmodics first-half effort but was untroubled for the rest of the game. 6
Trent Alexander-Arnold: Wonderful pass that led to England’s opening goal. He was the one player Ireland couldn’t really press. One errant pass in the second half but it was all too easy for the Liverpool man. 7.5
Marc Guéhi: Arguably England’s best central defender. Had a few wrestles with Adam Idah and felt the brunt of a Jayson Molumby tackle but an otherwise handy evening. 7
Harry Maguire: A walk in the park for the Manchester United defender having returned to the set-up after being omitted from the Euros. 7
Levi Colwill: Making his international debut he was unhurried in possession and while Chiedozie Ogbene was lively down his side, the Chelsea defender had a comfortable time. 7
Kobbie Mainoo: Felt the brunt of some Irish challenges. A very skilled operator at the base of the English midfield. Probably better in a more advanced role. 7
Declan Rice: The Arsenal midfielder was given licence to push forward which reaped dividends with his first-half goal. Didn’t celebrate though having worn the green jersey three times earlier in his career. 8
Jack Grealish: Unlike Rice, Grealish celebrated his fine finish with gusto. The former Ireland underage international was targeted on numerous occasions in the number eight role. Out to prove a point after his Euro 2024 snub and was the most creative player on the pitch. 8
Harry Kane: The Bayern Munich striker lacks pace and looks laboured at times – but he can still sniff out chances. Denied a couple of times by some last-ditch defending by Ireland. 6
Anthony Gordon: Very direct and offered plenty of penetration down England’s left flank and had the intelligence to know when to come off the wing which led to the visitors taking the lead. Loses a few balls but a difficult opponent. 7.5
Subs:
Morgan Gibbs-White: Another debutant in the last 15 minutes, but the game was over at that point. 5
Angel Gomes: First taste of senior international football. 5
Eberechi Eze: Unlucky with one effort on goal. Pushing for a starting place. 6
Jared Bowen: Had two late efforts on goal. 6
John Stones: Not on long enough to be rated.
