In a disappointing display, Ireland faced a challenging loss against Sweden with a 3-0 scoreline. Ireland, under the stewardship of Eileen Gleeson, is currently facing a scoring drought and thus, a problem with gaining favourable outcomes. The last goal for Ireland was netted by Caitlin Hayes a whopping 454 minutes ago against Northern Ireland at Windsor Park back on 5th December.
Despite outperforming in the second tier of the Nations League, the Irish team, led by Katie McCabe, suffered defeats against powerhouses such as France, England, and now Sweden in 2024. Drawing a parallel to late 80s and early 90s, when an Irish side captivated the nation by making Lansdowne Road a dreaded destination for Europe’s elite, the current team also comprises English professionals complemented by local icons on the rise. However, the difference lies in the seemingly impassable divide in skill levels.
The game started with a Swedish complaint to the referee, Katalin Kulcsár from Hungary, within the first three minutes. Lily Agg’s aggressive tackle on Barcelona player, Fridolina Rolfö, was the root of the controversy. Soon after, McCabe earned a free kick, overpowering Chelsea’s Nathalie Björn and Manchester City’s Filippa Angeldal due to Arsenal’s strong play.
Relishing every tackle, a young crowd of 22,868 watched the game in Dublin. Despite starting the game strongly, McCabe seemed to struggle due to fatigue from a long season and an Australian tour with the Gunners, where she played a full match. Even so, she gave a memorable performance, turning Madelen Janogy inside out and nearly scoring a goal that narrowly missed the crossbar.
Despite taking significant bruising, Sweden powered through Ireland’s relentless attacks. A vital sliding tackle was executed by Jessie Stapleton to prevent Johanna Rytting Kaneryd from getting a clear shot at the goal.
Furthermore, Sweden’s perilous journey in the Nations League group, also including France and England, was not apparent in the initial face-off due to the clever 3-5-2 formation initiated by Gleeson. This formation allowed Amber Barrett to start as a second forward, assisting Kyra Carusa.
Barrett nearly facilitated a goal for Lily Agg, though the midfielder’s clumsy shot missed Musovic’s far post. The game seemed to be moving in Ireland’s favour until Kosovare Asllani threaded an assist to the advanced Rytting Kaneryd who, free of markers, sailed the ball over Courtney Brosnan. This sequence of events unrolled languidly as the World Cup semi-final team capitalized on Ziu’s pass to Barrett, whereupon Magdalena Eriksson took control and then located Janogy who then picked out Asllani. An ongoing issue went unresolved as Rytting Kaneryd started to vex Louise Quinn. Kulcsár may find it difficult to justify not granting Sweden a penalty after Jesse Ziu toppled Asllani. Regardless, play continued with Ziu charging down the right side, leading Barrett to somehow evade an empty goal. The woman from Donegal athletically headed the ball over the crossbar, and all she managed was to hit the grass with frustration. It was indeed a critical juncture. McCabe continued to play, earning a yellow card for forcefully striking the ball at Asllani following a harmful clip on her ankle by the AC Milan midfielder. Both Agg and Linda Sembrant were cautioned for their feisty encounters. The game was fraught and strategic, it could have hung in the balance at 2-0 either way, but instead, it was Sweden leading 1-0 at half-time. Even though the margin was narrow, results are what shape periods, and Sweden capitalised on three out of their numerous opportunities. Coming back with enormous gusto for the second half, Ireland sent an optimistic message. Ziu’s cross encouraged Agg and Hanna Lundkvist to charge towards each other, the defender narrowly avoiding a hit before brushing past the Irish midfielder. Ziu demonstrated exceptional skill in all aspects. Despite Brosnan fumbling an Angeldal shot under her body, the West Ham wingback effectively cleared the goal line before Janogy got the chance to score. Immediately, Brosnan made amends with a splendid save from Rolfö as Ireland’s energy started to drain. A shift in strategy was imminent and Gleeson, commendably enough, switched industrious Stapleton with more creative Tyler Toland.
In a blistering Swedish onslaught, the senior Irish players appeared visibly worn out. When Quinn inadequately cleared Angeldal’s standard cross, ample room was provided for Rolfö to expertly curve a fine finish, unaffected by Brosnan’s defence.
The grand applause of the night was saved for Megan Campbell’s effective throw-ins. It posed the question as to why such a potent tool was preserved until the match was virtually lost. Hopefully, a realisation would dawn before the subsequent match in Stockholm on Tuesday and perhaps Gleeson would opt to start with Leanne Kiernan and Campbell.
In an attempt to end their lack of goals, Ireland was penalised by Rytting Kaneryd with a third Swedish goal on the counter-attack, only after Brosnan’s exceptional saves thwarted Matilda Vinberg.
The teams were drawn as follows:
For Ireland – Brosnan; Ziu, Patten (replaced by Campbell, 73), Lou Quinn, Hayes, McCabe; Agg (replaced by Kiernan, 73), Connolly, Stapleton (replaced by Toland, 61); Carusa (replaced by Mannion, 73), Barrett (replaced by Murphy, 83).
For Sweden – Mušović; Björn (replaced by Lundkvist, half-time), Sembrant, Eriksson, Andersson; Angeldal, Asllani (replaced by Vinberg, 67), Zigiotti Olme; Rytting Kaneryd (replaced by Jakobsson, 87), Janogy (replaced by Hammarlund, 67), Rolfö (replaced by Kafaji, 88).
The match was overseen by referee Katalin Kulcsár from Hungary.