The one Irish player who was effectively blameless in the defeat. Bazunu couldn't do much about the winning goal, his distribution was good and was alert on the rare occasions he was called upon to make saves.

RTÉ had to pick an Irish player of the match and Coleman, as one of the less poor performers, received it. He was solid but didn't have much to do at the back.

Had little to do defensively and was comfortable on the ball for the most part.

Ireland kept a clean sheet while he was on the pitch, but his distribution wasn't great at times.

Had a quiet game, perhaps partially as a result of picking up a hamstring injury, which saw him replaced at half-time.

Ineffective in attack and gave the ball away too often. Perhaps partially as a result of Sheffield United's poor season, he looks low on confidence.

After a decent performance in Serbia, Cullen's second competitive start was less memorable. Produced too many safe, sideways passes and didn't dominate the midfield in the way Irish fans would have hoped.

It's a big ask for a 20-year-old to come in in such pressurised circumstances, and Knight certainly brought plenty of energy to the midfield, but he didn't have enough influence on the game.

After a man-of-the-match showing in Serbia, Browne was far less impressive this evening. He looked tired and as with the rest of the team, his decision-making in the final third was poor.

His performance was marked by too many bad decisions and a lack of composure at key moments, which summed up Ireland's attacking woes.

Held the ball up well at times, but missed one big chance and wasn't clinical enough when he needed to be.