Prior to conducting his second training session for the Republic of Ireland in Helsinki’s Olympic Stadium, Icelandic coach Heimir Hallgrímsson discussed the series of unsatisfactory results he inherited after John O’Shea and Stephen Kenny. The Irish team’s performance has been underwhelming lately, with their only victory coming against Gibraltar and losing 11 out of their last 13 games. In the Euro 2024 qualifiers held in 2023, they were defeated in six out of their eight matches.
In the debut Nations League B fixtures under Hallgrímsson’s management, Ireland once again failed to perform, suffering a 2-0 loss against both England and Greece in Dublin. Hallgrímsson believes a change of country and environment could be beneficial in breaking this cycle of defeats. He observed that the team’s bonding has improved as they spend more time with each other, which could be conducive for team-building.
The situation may worsen if they lose to Finland, who are currently ranked closely with Ireland in FIFA’s ranking at 64th and 62nd, respectively. The late Thursday match kicks off at local time 9.45pm (7.45pm Irish) in what’s expected to be a pretty harsh wintry weather.
Hallgrímsson, who managed Iceland and Jamaica in the past, emphasised on the distinctive challenge of being a national team coach. He lamented the limited time and opportunities for adequate training sessions with the players, given their individual commitments to their clubs. The coach emphasised the need to be prepared and keep building, slowly but steadily enhancing the team’s performance camp by camp.
Nathan Collins has stepped into Séamus Coleman’s shoes as the captain of Ireland, taking the helm during the last month’s match against Greece. This has been a momentous occasion both for him and his family, even though Collins acknowledges he may not have fully absorbed the intensity of the occasion. His family, however, was overwhelmed with emotion.
Being the captain is made easier by the presence of many frontrunners in the team, Collins believes. He could potentially pick out six or seven lads whose contribution, motivation and talks greatly assist him, and make his task less daunting. Despite the absence of some senior players, Collins believes it’s time for the younger members to demonstrate their leadership abilities.
Lead coach of Finland, Markku Kanerva, on the other hand, will have to strategise without the injured Kaan Kairinen of Sparta Prague.
Lite-up for possible Ireland: Goalkeeper – Kelleher from Liverpool, Defence – Omobamidele from Nottingham Forest, Collins from Brentford, O’Shea from Ipswich Town, Brady from Preston North End, Midfield – Molumby from West Bromwich Albion, Cullen from Burnley, Knight from Bristol City, and Forwards – Szmodics, Ogbene, both from Ipswich Town and Ferguson from Brighton and Hove Albion.