An amusing spectacle unfolded as Declan Rice expertly navigated through Ireland’s lacking defence with repeated back-and-forth passes, setting up Jack Grealish to secure a 2-0 lead. Watching this, it seemed as though football was merely an elaborate jest at Ireland’s cost.
Has the Aviva ever hosted a player who relished a match as much as Grealish did on Saturday? Unlike Pep Guardiola and Gareth Southgate, Lee Carsley saw the playmaker’s potential to be the crucial focus of his team’s offensive play. Contrary to being deterred by the Dublin crowd’s boos, these have only served to boost his sense of importance and distinction. Unexpectedly and wonderfully, Grealish found himself once again in the starring role, a sensation he hadn’t experienced since his Aston Villa days.
His goal was the pinnacle of a mesmerising sequence in which England performed over 50 successful passes within three minutes. Sammie Szmodics was the only Irish player to even touch the ball as he intercepted a pass and made a desperate attempt to clear the ball.
The run to the goal was the peak of a 15-minute period that might be the most unequal length of play the stadium has ever witnessed. From the 11th to the 26th minute, England delivered staggering 170 passes compared to Ireland’s meagre 19.
After Grealish’s goal, it was clearly football was being played mainly at the expense of Ireland.
Ireland indicated their new straightforward approach from the start. Caoimhín Kelleher launched several free kicks well into England’s half. While goal-kicks were started short, they were designed to allow a defender to send it further afield. The first issue was the absence of a target man equipped to trap these high balls, Adam Idah doesn’t match up to Niall Quinn. The second concern was the painfully obvious fact that once the ball was with England, Ireland struggled to regain control.
Hallgrímsson’s Iceland triumphed over England in the 2016 Euros, exhibiting a level of football that England seemed incapable of matching. Back then, the ball was often returned to the opponent if given to the English, who had Eric Dier, Dele Alli, and Wayne Rooney on midfield duty – essentially a centre back and twin number 10s. England made 519 passes versus Iceland’s 250, surrendering possession on 34 occasions.
Fast forward just one week later, and Guardiola began his tenure at Manchester City, marking what might be considered a transformation in Premier League football. An example of this was seen in a match against Ireland in Dublin where England conducted 713 passes compared to Ireland’s 203, and only forfeited possession 14 times. As explained by Rice following Saturday’s match, players are now performing on an international platform in the identical manner to which they play for their individual clubs, with many of the players from teams like City, Liverpool, and Arsenal playing in a similar style, making the adaptation more seamless.
The potency of the first half of that game underscored the folly of believing that reverting to the ploys popularised by Jack Charlton could still be successful. Although there’s always the slim possibility of exploiting a defender’s error, it’s much more probable to find oneself on the losing side. This understanding led Stephen Kenny to transition Ireland into a team that’s more proficient with the ball in their possession.
While the strategy of putting the enemy under pressure persists in football, its execution now resembles Atalanta’s approach against Bayer Leverkusen in the previous Europa League finale.
The Italian squad applied high-pressure, man-to-man coverage across the field. Any Leverkusen player with the ball would instantaneously have an Atalanta player breathing down his neck. This strategy does leave Atalanta exposed with a potentially disadvantageous one-on-one situation at the back, dismissing the conventional belief that the defence should always outnumber the opposing attackers. Nevertheless, Atalanta willingly assumed this risk, viewing it as the cost they paid to enforce their high-pressure game further up the pitch.
Reflecting on the tactics employed by Ireland during their Saturday match, they incorporated an unusual defensive strategy, utilising five at the back. This approach included three centre backs who spent much of the match with no specific players to guard, thereby allowing England to deploy an extra two to three players in midfield. It was almost as if the Irish midfielders were mere training obstacles for the English team.
However, the notion that the additional defenders would enhance our defence was simply a mirage. Trent Alexander-Arnold succeeded in threading a 50-yard pass directly to Ireland’s centre, culminating in England’s first goal. Such a lapse in defence is inexcusable in any football match, as stated by Hallgrímsson.
Considering these shortcomings, it may be prudent to discard our five-person defensive strategy. Nevertheless, Hallgrímsson seems hesitant to make any sweeping changes. He confessed that he still needs to get to know his players better. A good quality, yet is it possible to be excessively modest?
Upon treating Séamus Coleman for his injury, several players congregated by the dugout for a spontaneous time-out. Paddy McCarthy was able to command the group, while Hallgrímsson simply observed and with John O’Shea lurking in the periphery.
Hallgrímsson, when probed about the team selection, claimed it was a collective decision. He hopes to exert more control in the future. However, he doesn’t seem to be making an effort to assert himself or deliver any specific messages. For instance, it was announced that O’Shea, not Hallgrímsson, would handle the upcoming Monday press briefing – a responsibility usually reserved for the head coach.
Perhaps this arrangement makes sense currently as O’Shea and McCarthy have been instrumental in both squad selection and team tactics. Still, Hallgrímsson was brought on board to lead. If this situation persists for much longer, his relevance may be questioned.
The question remains; will he reach a level of understanding in sufficient time? He has been on the job for two months already. Moreover, according to the newly appointed chief football officer at the FAI, Marc Canham, Hallgrímsson has been aware of his top selection for this role since March. This should have given him plenty of time to familiarise himself with the job, far more than most new coaches get.
In an ideal world, the introduction of our new coach to the team would have been facilitated by a few friendly matches. However, this opportunity was lost due to a nine-month delay by Canham in finalising the appointment. Nonetheless, a total of 41 individuals have been recruited for the Irish team in the past year alone. It shouldn’t take Hallgrímsson too long to evaluate this initial brigade and begin making decisive choices.