Gavin Cooney

AND SO ENDS Heimir Hallgrimsson’s first campaign in charge, with Ireland finishing third in their Nations League group for the fourth consecutive time. 

They haven’t quite secured their League B status just yet: they will have to play off against a League C runner-up next March to stay up. They will learn the identity of that opponent at a draw on Friday. Subsequent to that is the World Cup qualifier draw on 13 December.

(Ireland won’t quite learn their whole fate at that draw: instead they will be paired with either a winner or a loser of a specific Nations League quarter-final, which are also taking place in March.) 

The winners of each of the 12 qualification groups qualify for the World Cup, with the runners-up going to play-offs along with four Nations League group winners to decide on the final four berths. 

Hallgrimsson has been hired to qualify Ireland for a first World Cup in almost a quarter-century. Six games into his reign: what have been the main themes and trends?

Adaptability 

Marc Canham and the FAI stressed the importance of adaptability in their job description, given that Ireland will have to take points from teams ranked both above and below them if they are to qualify for the World Cup. 

Hallgrimsson has been true to that, and we have seen different systems against different teams. 

While he delegated responsibility for the home game against England to John O’Shea and Paddy McCarthy – who stuck with a Stephen Kenny-style 3-4-3 – Hallgrimsson shifted to a back four for the subsequent home game against Greece. 

That game featured a kind of 4-5-1, while the system away to Finland in Helsinki was a spin on a 4-4-2. Ireland played in that style without the ball, with possession they shifted to a 3-4-2-1, in which the left-back pushed high up the left flank and allowed Ireland’s left-sided attacker tuck in as a No.10. The same system was retained at home to Finland. 

Greece away saw a more traditional 4-4-2 with Troy Parrott supporting Evan Ferguson. At Wembley on Sunday, Hallgrimsson picked Nathan Collins in central midfield, standing in front of Ireland’s defensive line to gum up the centre and dropping into that defensive line whenever the ball went wide. 

The merits of each approach are open to debate, but beyond doubt is the fact Hallgrimsson has developed different means of playing against different standards of opponent. 

Struggling to strike a balance

Ireland offered no attacking threat at Wembley, but for this you can hardly blame them: such was England’s superiority, Ireland’s only hope was to defend deep and drag England down to their level. 

In the England home game, meanwhile, Ireland can be said to have done nothing well. 

Leaving those games aside, the clashes against Finland and Greece showed Ireland are still struggling to strike the right balance between defence and attack, which was an issue under the previous regime, too. 

Hallgrimsson looked back on the games in Helsinki and Athens and ruled that Ireland played their best football only when they went behind. “When we had nothing to lose, we played really well.”  

His message to his players ahead of Thursday’s home game against Finland was to be aggressive from the off, and not rely on falling behind to attack with more abandon. While his players did exactly that, pressing high and carving out several good chances, they were also alarmingly open in midfield, with Finland cutting a swathe through the team too often. Finland twice hit the post and then had a penalty saved, with Hallgrimsson admitting after the game that his team were lucky to win. 

Striking a good balance between defensive resolve and attacking threat without first falling behind has yet to be achieved. 

Kelleher: Ireland's outstanding player under Hallgrimsson so far. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

A core of vital players

Chalk all of Caoimhín Kelleher, Nathan Collins, Josh Cullen, Jason Knight Sammie Szmodics, and Evan Ferguson down as staples of the team under Hallgrimsson. Liam Scales wasn’t used in the first window but has started the four games since, while Dara O’Shea is likely the favour option at right-back.

With Chieodzie Ogbene now sidelined with a long-term injury, meanwhile, his place in the team looks to have been taken by Festy Ebosele. 

Robbie Brady has been favoured at left-back too, although Callum O’Dowda stepped up in Brady’s enforced absence this month. 

Experimentation 

Hallgrimsson has also juggled the need for results in the Nations League with an assessment of his options ahead of the World Cup qualifying campaign. Andrew Moran became the 32nd different player used by Hallgrimsson across the six Nations League games when he trotted on for his competitive debut at Wembley. 

Matt Doherty and Alan Browne are among those whose stock has fallen the sharpest thus far, with Jake O’Brien also peripheral as he is struggling for minutes at Everton. Jack Taylor impressed during his brief cameo in Athens, while Mikey Johnston blew hot and cold before brilliantly teeing up the decisive goal at home to Finland. 

Confidence issue remains 

At the end of the September window, Hallgrimsson remarked that his side had a serious confidence problem. “It feels”, he said, “like the jersey is too heavy for some players.”

It was hoped that two wins over Finland would inject some belief and good feeling into the players, but alas those results have not sufficiently routed the scar tissue from years of bad results and disappointment. That much was evident at Wembley, as Ireland collapsed when faced with their first moment of adversity. 

Making his players more resilient in difficult moments on the pitch is a must if Ireland are to upset the odds and qualify for Fifa’s quadrennial jamboree across the USA, Canada, and Mexico.