Tame friendly draws showed us why Ireland aren't expected to reach World Cup

Irish Times

a day ago

Results throughout the 2020s clearly explain why the
Republic of Ireland
is ranked 60th in the world by
Fifa
. Sandwiched between Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the lowly position in the global game comes after non-starter campaigns to qualify for the 2022 World Cup and Euro 2024.
An undeniable trend is evident. Ireland have lost their opening two matches in the previous four campaigns, having also crumbled at the start of the Nations League groups in 2022 and 2024.
It leaves manager Heimir Hallgrimsson with an enormous task to get at least a draw with Hungary on September 6th in Dublin and a victory over Armenia in Yerevan three days later to have any chance of reaching a play-off to feature at the 2026 World Cup in North America.
Portugal, the newly crowned Nations League champions, are expected to top Group F.
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Another false dawn would place Hallgrimsson in the same category as his predecessor Stephen Kenny despite an unbeaten run so far in 2025. Two victories against Bulgaria in a Nations League relegation play-off in March were followed by underwhelming draws with
Senegal
and
Luxembourg on Tuesday night
.
'I cannot lie, we are obviously not happy with the performance and how we wanted to end this week,' Hallgrimsson explained. 'We took, maybe not a step backwards, but we didn't take the next step. It would have been nice to have a good performance [against Luxembourg on Tuesday].'
Nathan Collins, the captain at Stade de Luxembourg, was also unable to hide his disappointment following the 0-0 draw.
'We were passive,' said Collins, 'but still dug out a clean sheet. We all know that was nowhere near our best. We have so much more to give.'
Besides the encouraging creativity of Finn Azaz against Bulgaria and the club form of Troy Parrott in the Netherlands and Collins at Brentford, there is little evidence to suggest that Hungary, led by
Liverpool's
Dominik Szoboszlai, can be contained at the Aviva Stadium, never mind in Budapest in November.
It was actually just boring, there was nothing happening
—
Heimir Hallgrimsson
There are some positives to cling to. Hallgrimsson clearly has a plan to guide Ireland to their first major tournament since Euro 2016. He has bedded in a structure built around sling-shotting the 33-year-old Robbie Brady up and down the left wing.
Eighteen minutes into Tuesday's scoreless affair, Brady's calf tightened. The veteran played 85 minutes of the 1-1 draw with Senegal the previous Friday.
Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson with John Joe Patrick Finn after Tuesday's 0-0 draw in Luxembourg. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho
Ryan Manning filled the gap with enthusiasm. The Southampton fullback was decent against Senegal in the inside left midfield slot that the Ireland manager has earmarked for the currently injured Sammie Szmodics.
There are no individual stars in a Hallgrimsson team. Not when he guided Iceland to Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup, nor when he brought Jamaica to the 2024 Copa America. The system trumps the individual. Historically, that approach has suited Irish players.
'We were really disappointed with the first half,' the manager continued. 'It was actually just boring, there was nothing happening. We talked at half-time. It was not about tactics. It was not about formations. It was more about attitude.
'Are you willing to do the work that's necessary? The basics that are necessary in a football game? No matter who you play, no matter whether it's a competitive or a friendly game, you need to do the basics. You need to deliver all the work that's necessary. That was just missing, the basics.
'Credit to the players, that changed in the second half, there was more momentum, more power, more energy. Still, we were not happy but we didn't lose at least.'
That about sums up the state of the senior men's team. At least they didn't lose to a country ranked 91st in the world.
The FAI must be concerned about the dip in interest as several media outlets did not see the value of sending journalists to Luxembourg. The players that were made available in the post-match mixed-zone backed up that editorial decision.
Even RTÉ, the broadcast right holders,
did not send their commentary team
nor was there a studio panel during the live coverage.
So, 10 months into Hallgrimsson's 18-month contract, how is it going?
'You're maybe two hours too late to ask this question,' he replied late on Tuesday night. 'I would have answered it really positively two hours ago but now, again, I'm not going to take too much from this because we have had a steady growth.
'Probably tomorrow, when I look at it, I will be happier with many things. If we are going to qualify we need to do better than we did now. Four points would be ok [against Hungary and Armenia], a good start. Six is what we aim for.'