League of Ireland in Europe 2019

[Ezeikial]

No complaints. The much better team over two rounds won comfortably.

Dundalk are miles away from the level that is needed to progress in the Champions League.

That is the unfortunate reality that needs to be grasped.

Good enough to win the league, but nowhere neat good enough for CL progression

[marinobohs]

Whether it was the heat or not, Dundalk never really got going. Unfortunately, over the two legs it's difficult to argue that the better side went through.
Still a big gap at this level, despite all the development at Dundalk

[Nesta99]

Dundalk havent really got going domestically never mind Europe. Still waiting to click in to that gear we know we are capable of!

[ger121]

On the plus side. They got through the 1st round as the seeded team and should find Slovan a step down from Qarabag. So reason to be optimistic going into the tie. Dundalk tend to play well in Tallaght too.

[Yossarian]

Can’t really argue with the result, there is a big gap between the teams and looking at it realistically it’s practically impossible for an Irish team to make the champions league groups coming up against teams at that level in only the second round.

On the game, McEleney was anonymous again and it’s no surprise that we were more positive in both legs when McGrath moved into the middle. Duffy was poor aswell and it was a very sloppy clearance that led to the decisive second goal.

The positive is that we’re still in Europe and I don’t think Bratislava will be close to Qarabags level. It’ll still be a tough game but I wouldn’t be overawed.

[paul_oshea]

That rte article was very annoying. It's like they had set out their stall early on and needed to fill in the bits at the end. For 70 or so minutes bar the first 10-15 mins there were few chances and alrhough qarabag dominated possession there was little happening. Dundalk containing them pretty well. That article suggests it was a whitewash from start to finish. Lazy journalism.

Lazy journalism can then feed into the oacyhe of Irish English league football supporters.....ah well they're still sh1te kinda attitude.

The 3-0 really doesn't do Dundalk justice in fairness.

[paul_oshea]

But they need to completely forget this now and set themselves up for brazzerslava. I did feel the well we've got another couple of weeks regardless talk as defeatism they need to go on now and prove to themselves they're more than capable

[pineapple stu]

The positive is that we’re still in Europe and I don’t think Bratislava will be close to Qarabags level. It’ll still be a tough game but I wouldn’t be overawed.
Bear in mind we were 5 minutes away from a draw out there a few years back.

OK, they had ten men, but we gave them a game in the home leg too; 2-1 down with ten to go.

On the flip side none of those players are left now, Slovan's budget is bigger than Dundalk's (€10m or so), and the extra two games for Slovan will help them as they get back into the season. They've moved stadium since too, so there'd probably be a much bigger home crowd (their fans were boycotting games when we played them)

But Dundalk should definitely be looking to have a go against them. Qarabag looked way better than Dundalk in the bits I saw; certainly can't imagine Slovan being as far ahead.

[Nesta99]

That rte article was very annoying. It's like they had set out their stall early on and needed to fill in the bits at the end. For 70 or so minutes bar the first 10-15 mins there were few chances and alrhough qarabag dominated possession there was little happening. Dundalk containing them pretty well. That article suggests it was a whitewash from start to finish. Lazy journalism.

Lazy journalism can then feed into the oacyhe of Irish English league football supporters.....ah well they're still sh1te kinda attitude.

The 3-0 really doesn't do Dundalk justice in fairness.

Maybe not tonight but over the tie I think the result is close enough to being a fair reflection. Qarabag could and should have been 2 or 3 up in the 1st leg before we got a foothold in the game. Their set piece in the 1st 15mins alone tonight had us scrambling - see that lofted ball from a corner to the back post we see in LoI, compare that to the way the ball was whipped in tonight that only needs a glance of a head to be goal bound. Duffy this season has been poor taking corners whereas Flores looks far more effective. It is what it is,, €1.2m banked with the EL games to go. Assuming we win the league we continue to improve our ranking and maybe pick up another .5 over the next 2 weeks.

Best of luck to Rovers tomorrow/today, I fear an equally chastening evening in Cyprus but certainly hope not!!

[Charlie Darwin]

Best of luck to Rovers tomorrow/today, I fear an equally chastening evening in Cyprus but certainly hope not!!
Fingers crossed. Qarabag are a better side than Apollon but Dundalk are a better side than Rovers. I don't think Apollon have the ability Qarabag have to shut off space for passing the ball though so hopefully we'll have a better share of the ball. Dundalk did very well given the level Qarabag were able to bring.

[PartySaint]

. It is what it is,, €1.2m banked with the EL games to go. Assuming we win the league we continue to improve our ranking and maybe pick up another .5 over the next 2 weeks.



That's the thing, Dundalk are going to have another few goes at the Champions League over the next few years. All it takes is a half decent draw one year and you might even get a go at the playoff round.

I don't see you getting into the CL group stages but I think we'll see Dundalk in the EL group stages again within the next 3 years

[Real ale Madrid]

The usual social media knee jerk reaction to an Irish team losing in Europe I see last night. Christ it gets boring.

A bitterly disappointing way to go out for me. The defending for the second goal was not up to the required standard and if Dundalk are to get past Bratislava then they need to do better than that. The first goal in Oriel Pk as well had a major impact on the tie overall and let’s face it – it was incredibly soft. The complexion of the tie is totally different if Qarabag don’t have an away goal. If Irish teams are to Progress in Europe – they need everything to go right. Not gifting goals such as this really is the starting point.

Having said all that – Slovan Bratislava’s (1-1,1-1 L on Pens Sutjeska Niksic (Mont), (2-1, 2-0 Feronkeilli ( Kos) ) results don’t look all that impressive. That was Sutjeska’s first time winning a tie in Europe and they were comprehensively beaten by APOEL. Bratislava will be no mugs, but surely represent a decent opportunity to make the Play off round where with the draw set up the way it is ( 10 ELQR3 winners - 6 un-seeded teams will play CLQR3 losers, and the other 4 un-seeded will face off against each other ) anything could happen.

[CorribsideSteve]

Based on last night's performance, LOI sides are as far away from qualifying for Europe as they were in the 90's. Hopefully SRFC can buck that trend and the overall feeling of glum. Great money Dundalk have earned, but they need 5-10 times that much money to reach a group stage. Qarabag look to have the same relative riches Celtic have in Scotland, whereas Dundalk are very much a bottom of the table SPL team by comparison, could have lost 6 or 7 nil last night, and probably should have. I hope the same fate doesn't await Rovers.

[paul_oshea]

The thing is there is progression but this Dundalk side have regressed from where they were a few years back. The defensive errors or lapses in concentration were removed from their game but it seems to have seeped back into the side even though they have brought in extra quality to the side(horgan irreplaceable really aside). The defensive line up last night as well is similar to the 2016 side who coped very well with sides just as good as Qarebag. That's the slightly disappointing thing.

And its not like late 90s/2000s there is further progression and in general much better performances, and consistency between two sides now, that you didnt have way back then, bar maybe Bohemians in the early to mid 2000s. It's just annoying that those stupid errors that seemed to be eradicated have appeared to slip back into teams.

Either way Dundalk and Rovers can only improve playing these sides and quality. Can only be better for them, even if confidence is dented in Dundalks case last night. I do think that it needs to be Dundalk and Rovers consolidating and building their co-effs for the next couple of years though.

I re-read that article this morning and the one last night, theres definitely less negativity between the two but it still comes across as though the journo was scrambling to get something in and had set out his stall early doors and kept the theme running through. I missed the first ten minutes but from then on till 70 minutes Dundalk were holding their own, if not controlling the ball. And for 50-70/75 they were getting further forward and moving the ball faster/quicker.

[CorribsideSteve]

I didn't see the same match. I saw a side that were never going to score, and always looked like gifting away a bunch of soft goals. It's all well and good to be getting a few passes away, and being relatively compact in defence, up to a point,but every player took 4/5 seconds too long on the ball going forward and then got ambushed by a hungry pack of Qarabag players. That's the step up. I don't wanna slate Dundalk, but there's such an ocean to cross before something like CL Group Stages for them at this moment in time. Maybe they can refocus efforts to beat Bratislava, and I really want that to be the case, but they will have to be much better than they were last night.

[oriel]

The best route for any side getting to the EL group stages is via the EL r3, forget about the CL, will never happen again for an side to even make the play offs for that. Just look at the standard of side left or entering CL r3, Ajax, Celtic/Cluj, Copenhagen / Red Star, D Zagreb / Feren’s, all are seeded then likes of unseeded ones like Young Boys, APOEL, Qarabag, Maribor, etc and more also.

Last night was tough and was def the strongest team we have faced since Zenit, the regression of DFC midfield quality is another challenge, as was 4/10 performances last night from Duffy and McEleney. Reviewing the two legs in full, DFC were the better side for 45 mins only, it was a stroll in the park for Qarabag apart from that. They were fully deserved winners, just a pity about the sloppy 3rd goal.

On to Bratislava now next week, they will be no mugs but will be a much more level playing field, and will be a good chance to get back on track, but it will need a huge improvement. Its obvious Bratislava are a considerable step down on Qarabag and granted they lost in the CL r1 to Sutjeska of Montenegro, but they have a much bigger budget than Dundalk. In saying that, I still think we will have a good chance of progressing, as long as we take back a decent score from next Wed night. Whoever makes it will then probably face a much higher ranked side in the EL play off round, draw for that is this Monday.

Looking at who is left / will be left in EL, Bratislava is not the worst one for Dundalk, they will of course be thinking the exact same.

Best of luck to Rovers tonight.

[redobit]

Progress and preparation for LOI teams in Europe is all well and good but it can't be at the expense of other clubs.

Europe has become a valid reason for clubs/ FAI to brush LOI games aside and thats not good enough. The club in Europe gets all the preferential treatment ... the clubs who can well afford to have match postponed are being favored over teams that are basically surviving.

Our game against Dundalk was due to be played on a Bank Holiday Monday, so a good crowd guaranteed. Now its postponed and we will have it rearranged for for some crappy Tuesday, plus adding insult to injury, it means we now have no league home game for over a month. This is the third season in a row we have gone months without a home game. Its a joke.

The European bias combined with the ridiculous fixture list has the potential to put teams to the wall. Where will all the LOI fans be who say you should be supporting all LOI teams in Europe be then.

[paul_oshea]

I didn't see the same match. I saw a side that were never going to score, and always looked like gifting away a bunch of soft goals. It's all well and good to be getting a few passes away, and being relatively compact in defence, up to a point,but every player took 4/5 seconds too long on the ball going forward and then got ambushed by a hungry pack of Qarabag players. That's the step up. I don't wanna slate Dundalk, but there's such an ocean to cross before something like CL Group Stages for them at this moment in time. Maybe they can refocus efforts to beat Bratislava, and I really want that to be the case, but they will have to be much better than they were last night.

Im not suggesting that Qarabag werent a level or two above Dundalk, they certainly were, and it showed when the heads dropped and the concentration dipped in the last 15 minutes. I am also not suggesting that Dundalk could have won this game, but they could realistically have been going in holding onto a 2-1 lead and things might have been different. True they never really looked like scoring but had hoban left the chance for mcgrath and it had gone in then, again, you're looking at a different game. I am also not suggesting that they or any other side are close to CL group stages, but i think like oriel suggests with some luck and eradicating those silly lapses then later stages EL or play-off round is definitely a perennial possibility.

[sparky12345678]

The best route for any side getting to the EL group stages is via the EL r3, forget about the CL, will never happen again for an side to even make the play offs for that. Just look at the standard of side left or entering CL r3, Ajax, Celtic/Cluj, Copenhagen / Red Star, D Zagreb / Feren’s, all are seeded then likes of unseeded ones like Young Boys, APOEL, Qarabag, Maribor, etc and more also.


The two teams that are slightly odd teams out seem to be Cluj and Ferencváros who were both on 3.5 going into the draw. Are there leagues/budgets that much better? probably but still...
I mean the important thing is to keep your seeding ticking over at the minimum, ie winning the game when your seeded. It still requires going through 2 ties as a non-seed so it would then just depend on getting a good draw (twice), a bit of luck and/or playing their hearts out (twice).
The Champions route does make things a bit interesting in limiting it to champions and restricting the draw from other more worrying high seeded opposition. So hopefully things work out at some point but yea obviously there needs to be a step up across the board if the league is gona reach the likes of Hungary/Romania/Scandanavian teams...

[sbgawa]

Maybe i am an optimist at heart but Dundalk are playing a team ranked well below them and if they get through that are in a play off for the group stages.

Rovers have a tough task tonight and i am worried enough about that but then would play Austria Vienna (ranked well above Appollon) before they would get to the play offs.
The champions path represents a decent chance at group stages every year for whoever wins the league and with EL2 coming group stage is closer than ever (for the champs)

[Charlie Darwin]

Based on last night's performance, LOI sides are as far away from qualifying for Europe as they were in the 90's.
Well the current group stages were only introduced in the late 90s so this doesn't really mean anything.

[paul_oshea]

I cant see that EL2 thing lasting very long, financially it would have to be a drain on UEFA.

[Charlie Darwin]

Rovers have a tough task tonight and i am worried enough about that but then would play Austria Vienna (ranked well above Appollon)
Austria Wien are ranked well below Apollon.

[dong]

Progress and preparation for LOI teams in Europe is all well and good but it can't be at the expense of other clubs.

Europe has become a valid reason for clubs/ FAI to brush LOI games aside and thats not good enough. The club in Europe gets all the preferential treatment ... the clubs who can well afford to have match postponed are being favored over teams that are basically surviving.

Our game against Dundalk was due to be played on a Bank Holiday Monday, so a good crowd guaranteed. Now its postponed and we will have it rearranged for for some crappy Tuesday, plus adding insult to injury, it means we now have no league home game for over a month. This is the third season in a row we have gone months without a home game. Its a joke.

The European bias combined with the ridiculous fixture list has the potential to put teams to the wall. Where will all the LOI fans be who say you should be supporting all LOI teams in Europe be then.

Nobody is really arsed about that whole argument unfortunately.
Pushing clubs to breaking point and without any real progress to justify it.

[marinobohs]

Nobody is really arsed about that whole argument unfortunately.
Pushing clubs to breaking point and without any real progress to justify it.

If clubs that qualify for Europe want co operation from other clubs they should be willing to share the money they make. Why should Sligo (or any club ) incur loss to assist another LOI club earn huge amounts (by LOI standards) of cash ?
There is no Benifit at all for Sligo in Dundalk progressing so why should they lose a lucrative gate ? Surely up to Dundalk or whoever to use the euro money to provide an adequate squad ?

[sbgawa]

Austria Wien are ranked well below Apollon.


You are right , i meant to say Austria Vienna are ranked well above Rovers while Dundalk are playing a team ranked below them.
On a positive note a bit like Dundalk are now playing an easier team, at least if we get through tonight we should have at least as good a chance against Austria Vienna as we had against Appollon.
First 10 mins tonight are massive, hoping to see a bit of energy from Rovers and avoid an early goal.

The Champions path is a massive advantage (as it should be)

[passinginterest]

I missed the first ten minutes but from then on till 70 minutes Dundalk were holding their own, if not controlling the ball. And for 50-70/75 they were getting further forward and moving the ball faster/quicker.

I'd agree with a lot of this. I missed most of the first 20 and wasn't fully concentrated on the game, but for long spells it seemed fairly even. At times Dundalk seemed to have heaps of space in the middle of the pitch only to be let down by a really sloppy touch, pass or poor decision. Hoban, McEleny and Duffy were especially disappointing in this aspect of the game. It's the part of Dundalk's game that was probably most impressive in their previous run and it seemed to desert them last night. As POS has said there was a spell from around 55-75 where Dundalk were getting on top, and Quarabag were looking tired, with player cramping up. It culminated with the Hoban backheel chance and ended swiftly with the Quarabag second. The second killed the game Dundalk heads went down and the Quarabag kicked on. Had Dundalk scored during that spell it could have been a very different outcome. That's not to say there wasn't a gulf in class, but there's not need to overplay it either.

Disappointing Rovers game is not on TV. Hopefully they can keep it tight early and nick something from a set piece again.

[CorribsideSteve]

Im not suggesting that Qarabag werent a level or two above Dundalk, they certainly were, and it showed when the heads dropped and the concentration dipped in the last 15 minutes. I am also not suggesting that Dundalk could have won this game, but they could realistically have been going in holding onto a 2-1 lead and things might have been different. True they never really looked like scoring but had hoban left the chance for mcgrath and it had gone in then, again, you're looking at a different game. I am also not suggesting that they or any other side are close to CL group stages, but i think like oriel suggests with some luck and eradicating those silly lapses then later stages EL or play-off round is definitely a perennial possibility.

Those are all fair points. Luck is huge. Speaking of which, best of luck to Rovers tonight. Even with a 2-1 lead, oppressive heat and just one lapse in concentration, and it could be a long evening. Would love to see Jack Byrne step at and be at it from the 1st whistle like last time out.Holding out hope!

[bohsmug]

If clubs that qualify for Europe want co operation from other clubs they should be willing to share the money they make. Why should Sligo (or any club ) incur loss to assist another LOI club earn huge amounts (by LOI standards) of cash ?
There is no Benifit at all for Sligo in Dundalk progressing so why should they lose a lucrative gate ? Surely up to Dundalk or whoever to use the euro money to provide an adequate squad ?

Yeah, there should be a compensation package for clubs who have games postponed for no other reason than to aid their opponents European run. €20k or something per game. If clubs want to knock that of their Euro money then it's their own decision.

[seand]

Yeah, there should be a compensation package for clubs who have games postponed for no other reason than to aid their opponents European run. €20k or something per game. If clubs want to knock that of their Euro money then it's their own decision.

I'm in favour of compensation for clubs having home games fooked around with for the Euro teams. Does a move to midweek cost the home club €20k though?

[PartySaint]

Not LOI related but FC Santa Coloma of Andorra are currently drawing 1-1 away to Astana at half time, the first leg was 0-0, could be a massie upset on the cards.

[pineapple stu]

20 minutes to go. Winners play Valletta in the next round. Santa Coloma or Valletta would be a hell of a draw to get in the final qualifying round of the Europa League!

[CuanaD]

2:1 now :(

[CuanaD]

3:1 - all over bar the shouting


lovely finish - but the same level of defending we're complaining about from our teams

[Ezeikial]

Good luck to Shamrock Rovers - the Cypriots looked there for the taking from the first leg. It needs a good tactical approach from the Rovers bench - whats there to be nervous about?

It would be good to have some company in the draw for Europa League play-offs next Monday

[CorribsideSteve]

Any links? All the usual ones are out

[paul_oshea]

Any stream

[pineapple stu]

1-0 down. Stating the obvious, but really not the start they'd have been looking for

[Real ale Madrid]

Thought it was a foul at the back post.

[EatYerGreens]

Any streams for the Rovers game ?

[Real ale Madrid]

Live stream on Rovers page. 8.99 for the privilege. UK&ire only

[CorribsideSteve]

Any streams for the Rovers game ?
Except for the official SRFC stream, it would seem not. Raging that I forgot about it (until now).Even Skorlive don't have it listed. Following on twitter/soccerway. Not ideal start but still along way to go.

[pineapple stu]

Text updates on RTE here - https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2019/0801/1066522-apollon-limassol-v-shamrock-rovers-europa-lge-updates/

It's like the 90s and watching a game on Aertel all over again!

[Real ale Madrid]

Rovers over-playing it at the back on occasion. Nearly got caught. As you would expect Apollon well on top. Comms don't sound happy Thessaloniki 1-0 up on AEL

[texidub]

Is it on the radio anywhere?

Smoke signals?

Message in a bottle?

[Ezeikial]

Skor is now working


https://www.skorlive.com/soccer

[patrickccfc]

Mannus saved a penalty?

[Real ale Madrid]

Half time stats tells the story.

2803

[passinginterest]

Been watching since about 51 mins. Rovers having some brilliant possession. Hopefully the can keep it up and create some chances. Ref a bit card happy?

[CorribsideSteve]

Disappointing. Especially as they started the 2nd half brightly.