Luxembourg v Republic of Ireland - Sun, 14th November 2021 - 2022 World Cup Qualifier

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Razors left peg

Jesus now a 3 nil is not a 3 nil. Lads are really going to any lengths not to give Kenny any credit

---

Entirely predictable. I see we’re also back to where Anthony Barry is running the show ;);)It’s all about results, until we get one.

For the record we weren’t great for long spells tonight, I think everyone recognises that. It was one of those games when we just needed to get the breakthrough and then the game changed. It could all have gone wrong of course, if Bazunu hadn’t made his saves, or if the ref hadn’t disallowed their goal, but those are the breaks Kenny hasn’t been getting up to now, so I’d say he was due one.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by EAFC_rdfl

Where is paul o shea

---

Where’s Wally?

Well done Kenny ,sent out a team intent on winning the game playing out from the back giving players the confidence and trust to do it ,a clean sheet away from home ,3 goals two of which were absolute class efforts.ya the team had a few scares but before those should have an obvious pen which would have put them on the front foot.We have been crying out for a manager to have our int team play the passing game, play attractive entertaining football and Kenny has shown he has the b--lls to give it a go so so called pundits and bitter ...fans... should stop the whinging and get behind the man.

Caomhin Kelleher must also be watching and thinking.. I could be Liverpools number 1 for years.. and not get a sniff of a cap, while League One players are racking them up

Was also brilliant to hear Kenny talk about knowing about Jason Knights character and ability from being with the 21's.. makes you feel there's now a consistency and continuity between the different levels in the Irish game.. for every u21 squad you only need 1-2 players a year breaking through, and you're consistently refreshing your senior squad with 4-8 new players per tournament cycle

Looking across European football.. are there 24 teams there that we shouldn't be capable of beating if we play to our ability? Thats Euros level qualification.

By 2030 the WC will be expanded to 48 teams.. giving many of these players a shot at a WC by then

And lay off Idah and Connolly.. they're kids ffs.. Ogbene was playing for Cork City and Limerick at 19-21.. Idah and Connolly are trying to break into a Premier league team at the same age.. give them a chance. Obafemi too.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Insidetherock

Was also brilliant to hear Kenny talk about knowing about Jason Knights character and ability from being with the 21's.. makes you feel there's now a consistency and continuity between the different levels in the Irish game.. for every u21 squad you only need 1-2 players a year breaking through, and you're consistently refreshing your senior squad with 4-8 new players per tournament cycle

Looking across European football.. are there 24 teams there that we shouldn't be capable of beating if we play to our ability? Thats Euros level qualification.

By 2030 the WC will be expanded to 48 teams.. giving many of these players a shot at a WC by then

And lay off Idah and Connolly.. they're kids ffs.. Ogbene was playing for Cork City and Limerick at 19-21.. Idah and Connolly are trying to break into a Premier league team at the same age.. give them a chance. Obafemi too.

---

Great Post. We have not made idah one chance so far in his career yet, the lad just needs to get an actual chance and he will take it. We very rarely get the quality of idah or connolly or obafemi or parrott coming through so people need to appreciate that and as you say give them a chance.

The other reason the FAI wont get rid of Kenny.. and they shouldnt, is because increasingly the Irish public like him.

Outside if the odd backs to the wall fluke wins in the last two decades or so, we haven't ever come close to beating "the big 10-12" teams.. we're always drawing against them at home and getting mixtures of draws/close defeats against them away. Remove the two aberrations against Luxembourg and Azerbaijan earlier this year, and we're back doing that.

If we played both again next month in Dublin, we'd fancy beating them handy enough this time, wouldn't we.

Really enjoyed the game. Highlights: Bazunu's save, the pzazz of the last two goals, Knight's immediate impact. Ogbene is really likeable, delighted he scored. Team as a whole is easy to get behind. Good times.

Jittery starts to both the first and second halves, and not our best performance of the campaign. But we were in the ascendancy for large portions of the game (+55% possession, double their shot count, greater number of passes, greater pass accuracy) against a motivated home team and were deserving comfortable winners. It is evident that the team is well-coached, the players are responding to that, and we are progressing towards getting the collective best out of the players available to us. There is genuine reason for optimism going forward.

And, judging by comments coming out of their camp, we did world football a favour by putting Luxembourg back in their little box.

re Ogbene. Rotherham is his level, lots of pace but a poor first touch and no eye for a pass. Just because we want him to be good doesn't make it so. I'd love to be wrong here

Still tinkering with formation against a poor Luxembourg side, got lucky not to be a goal down before we scored, and we can't simply ignore the first 65 mins last night lads.

Last 20 mins was brilliant, but its a 90 minute game

On the positives for kenny. The players love him and will give the etc bit for him. He is an incredibly likeable guy it has to be said.

Something something tedious negative whingeing... :D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diggs246

Still tinkering with formation against a poor Luxembourg side, got lucky not to be a goal down before we scored, and we can't simply ignore the first 65 mins last night lads.
Last 20 mins was brilliant, but its a 90 minute game

---

we've come away from plenty of other recent away games against teams categorised as "poor" with scrappy one nils or draws. in our last two away games we have come away with two 3 nil wins. neither were perfect performances, but who are we to be picky with the performance? Despite the criticism of the first 60 mins, their GK still had to pull off at least 3 decent saves. The idah pen was stone wall.
this is as good as its ever been for us against similar away opposition. a very good nights work imo.

cant lose sight of the fact that they have two players who have played in the champions league. they were also well up for it with their new stadium being opened and the chance of their best ever wc qualification performance. i thought they were quite competent at times. definitely one of the better lower ranked teams around

TBF Ogbene isn't a striker, and looks a bit lost there. He starts out on the right for Rotherham, and is always looking to get out wide even for Ireland. I'm sure he'd love a Niall Quinn-esque forward to swing crosses in for.

3-0 away wins are like buses: they don’t come along too often, now we’ve had two in a row.

Objectively speaking it wasn’t a great performance. The first 15 minutes of the second half was brutal and we really could/should have been behind. But we weren’t.

I thought we had some really good spells in the first half with Ogbene being the main danger. Robinson was uncharacteristically sloppy but I can’t help feeling that Idah was the weak link in the attacking 3. He was ineffective, indecisive and utterly unable to impose himself. I think Ogbene and Robinson suffered from his inability to impose himself and take up good positions, to occupy Luxembourg’s defenders and take them out of position etc. As Babb said on Sky afterwards Idah needs to be playing men’s football week in, week out to continue to develop as he’s just not ready for this level yet. Should Kenny know he’s not ready? By this stage I’d say yes, and to that end I’d label it a selection mistake.

McClean was busy and industrious but at times I felt that he took more out of the play than he brought to it. I think I still prefer a natural left back like Stevens. So on those two counts I’d be critical of the selection, and also it was evident even in the recent better performances that Cullen and Hendrick had to do a lot of work as a 2 man midfield.

After 10-15 minutes of the second half I told my WhatsApp mates Kenny’s in-game management is really being tested now. I thought myself that McGrath for Idah was needed but nobody can argue that what Kenny did changed the game and won it for us, and convincingly in the end. Knight’s influence was immediate and decisive.

Overall, I love what Cullen brings to the side. Doherty was proactive all night. Coleman and Duffy weren’t as good as in recent games but did the right things at the key times for the most part. Egan solid except for one error. Hendrick was noticeably better after Knight came on, and the same can be said for Robinson and Ogbene.

Bazunu. What to say?

We rode our luck not to be 1 down but in all honesty, in real time I was expecting the ref to blow for the foul on Duffy. It was soft, probably a bit softer than the Keane foul on Patricio, but it’s what you expect to be given – as I say, in real time. Equally I think you can say we probably should have had a penalty for a barge on Idah. Key moments and good/bad luck change games, we all know that. The chance they fluffed (after a stray Duffy pass?) that Bazunu saved was similar in a way to the goal that Finland scored against us – in each game.

So, marking Kenny’s scorecard: our selection didn’t help but the substitution changed the game. Overall, I thought we had far more good moments than in comparable games down the years. The possession numbers and chances created numbers were both good. Objectively the quality was good but only intermittently. We moved the ball well for about 60 minutes of the 90, scored two lovely goals (kudos to McClean for the third) and scored another crucial set piece goal when it mattered.

I’m enjoying watching this team and seeing these players develop. Ogbene’s attitude melts my heart and Bazunu is one of the finest young men you could imagine. It’s abundantly evident that the way we develop play now is becoming ingrained into the team’s nature and how we develop play is more courageous, sophisticated and effective than almost at any time watching Ireland outside the purple patch of the late 80s, early 90s and the better parts of Mick part 1 – all spells when we had better players.

In many ways that was a prototypical Kenny game. He's never been afraid to take chances and set up a team to go and try to win a game comprehensively. He backs his players and believes they'll deliver. The formation was a risk with a centre forward replacing an attacking midfielder, it was a show of intent and ambition, Kenny admitted that the game was loose and open after the game, but it was also clear he knew that was likely to happen, he wanted a bit of chaos, probably because we've struggled at times when it's been too clean and a bit turgid. It was a huge risk, a draw probably would have kept him in the job anyway, but he desperately wanted the win and risked it all. I'd have probably preferred a switch to 4 at the back myself, but I guess there was a bit of fear around the pace of the Luxembourg forwards.

There was a poor start but after the first 7 or 8 minutes we were clearly the better side in the first half, the Bazunu save was magnificent, but we had more and better opportunities at the other end just let down by poor positioning. The second half was wild from the start and we lost our discipline, trying to force passes from the back got us caught a few times and it got jittery. We still had 2/3 chances in the first 7 minutes of the half, but we definitely looked like conceding too. Management responded perfectly. Knight replacing Idah, added a body in the middle and immediately cut out the space for them to play. Robinson got more central and Ogbene was able to push right up on their last man. Knight also had the energy to burst forward and the skill to create which were the winning of the game. It was a hugely positive finish to the match and a boost going into the next phase of development for this squad.

I'm still a huge fan of Idah, and I think he'll be a key player for the next decade, but he needs football and a bit of confidence at the moment. He was good off the bench against Portugal, but struggled a bit last night, he has all the attributes to be a top class centre forward and he's still very young for a player of his style. I wouldn't be writing off any of Idah, Connolly, Parrot or Obafemi as genuine options, hopefully at least one of them will really catch fire in the next year or two and they'll come back into the team, not only confident but already having valuable international experience in their back pocket. In the meantime, hopefully Robinson keeps getting a game and maybe Hogan can come back into contention or Will Keane can be a genuine option.

Overall, I think there was about 20 to 25 mins of fairly poor football last night but we were the better team for the other 65-70 minutes. It did have the feel of a game where both sides were a tiny bit fragile and the first goal was going to decide the game. For once, a bit of luck went with Kenny and it was comprehensive by the final whistle. There's exciting times ahead for this squad and it's rarely going to be dull.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diggs246

re Ogbene. Rotherham is his level, lots of pace but a poor first touch and no eye for a pass. Just because we want him to be good doesn't make it so. I'd love to be wrong here

Still tinkering with formation against a poor Luxembourg side, got lucky not to be a goal down before we scored, and we can't simply ignore the first 65 mins last night lads.

Last 20 mins was brilliant, but its a 90 minute game

On the positives for kenny. The players love him and will give the etc bit for him. He is an incredibly likeable guy it has to be said.

---

I think his first touch is not bad. I think the eye for a pass bit is difficult to be conclusive on. He did well getting in behind Luxembourg a couple of times in the first half but didn't manage to get the pull back or the cross off. Maybe it was movement in the box or lack thereof (nobody else on the Irish team managed to find Adam Idah in the box last night) or maybe it was poor execution or maybe it was, indeed, not having the eye for a pass.

"Just because we want him to be good doesn't make it so"- this makes no sense. For Ireland, he has been good in almost every game he has played. He has been good against Luxembourg. He has been good against Portugal. He has 2 international goals in 5 games.

His numbers at club level speak for themselves. He clearly has areas to improve on to make an impact at that level which is only League One- final ball is definitely the main one. There's a piece whereby Kenny has managed to get the best out of him - he's done the same with Duffy and Hendrick but those lads have plenty Premiership experience under their belts. Is there a piece whereby his League One manager at Rotherham needs to get more out of him? Is the coaching there good enough or specific enough to improve the areas that need improving?

Might he be like Elbouzedi and could have a better impact outside of the traditional English football pyramid?

I've one other "tedious" thing to say! When we went 1-0 up, we went for the kill as apposed to sitting back ....that I do love

No question that is 10/10 stuff for me

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Stuttgart88

Ogbene’s attitude melts my heart

---

As we are talking about Ogbene, I think this is his best attribute as a footballer. He’s a willing runner, good in the air, direct and fast but it is the attitude – no ego, 100% effort, smile on his face, and clearly loving it all. That positive attitude is infectious and brilliant for building and rallying a team.

Curates egg of a game. Good result in the end, but we were awful for long periods of the game.

Had the referee given their perfectly good goal, I suspect we would have lost 1-0, but we went down the pitch and scored almost immediately.

It will be easier for the naysayers to say that was lucky, but if all referee decisions were correct we would have beaten Portugal last week, so that's a swings and roundabout situation for me.

Kenny gets to keep his job. The players and fans like him, but in finishing above Luxembourg on goal difference he has achieved only the bare minimum, which he only gets away with because of the overhaul he has done with the squad. The Euro's campaign has to be better than this or he won't get to the end of it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Insidetherock

The other reason the FAI wont get rid of Kenny.. and they shouldnt, is because increasingly the Irish public like him.

Outside if the odd backs to the wall fluke wins in the last two decades or so, we haven't ever come close to beating "the big 10-12" teams.. we're always drawing against them at home and getting mixtures of draws/close defeats against them away. Remove the two aberrations against Luxembourg and Azerbaijan earlier this year, and we're back doing that.

If we played both again next month in Dublin, we'd fancy beating them handy enough this time, wouldn't we.

---

Interesting. If we had won those games and held on inn Portugal we would be in the playoffs now.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by backstothewall

It will be easier for the naysayers to say that was lucky, but if all referee decisions were correct we would have beaten Portugal last week, so that's a swings and roundabout situation for me.

---

You probably can't give them that goal without giving us the penalty. And you couldn't give us our goal against Portugal without leaving Pepe on the pitch to stop it in the first place. But swings and roundabouts as you say. Similar for third policeman's comment on reaching the playoffs - but had that Serbian defender not whacked the ball of his own teammate's face, this little revival might have been stopped dead. But this is the universe where what's happened has happened.

It wasn't pretty for stages - more pace but the same lacklustre goal threat that I'd expected. But it's a significant improvement on the home game, as was the Azeri win last month. You have to be happy with that.

The March friendlies are next on the radar and I think we need them to be challenging. No New Zealand/Oman tokenist nonsense. I think ideal would be League B opposition we don't get drawn against next month. That's the next step of the recovery - to see if we can do it against teams of a supposedly similar level to us, who won't help us along the way with bad misses or bad goalkeeping.

Looking back at how Portugal and Serbia did away to Luxembourg, it doesn’t sound like either had it easy against them. Reads like Serbia were matched by Luxembourg, and fortunate to win. Luxembourg were obviously going to fancy their chances having won in Dublin and give it a right go, but I don’t think the 3-0 result flatters us – we had more of the game and were the better team. I’m happy.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pineapple stu

The March friendlies are next on the radar and I think we need them to be challenging. No New Zealand/Oman tokenist nonsense. I think ideal would be League B opposition we don't get drawn against next month. That's the next step of the recovery - to see if we can do it against teams of a supposedly similar level to us, who won't help us along the way with bad misses or bad goalkeeping.

---

My preference is for non-european opposition. With the nations league added into the mix we have very few opportunities to play someone a bit exotic.

That doesn't have to mean Brazil or Argentina, or complete dead rubbers (like NZ/Oman as you mentioned). Someone like Algeria would be a lovely change.

Delighted with that result and you cant knock back to back 3-0 away wins against any opposition. Worth noting that Kenny has changed his football philosophy over the last year. We're now playing possession football and trying to get forward quickly rather than the slow backward-sideways passing game he started off with. The selection of Ogbene has been a master stroke because he has done nothing at club level to warrant a call up but I'm sure a few club managers have already noted his form in the last 2 games.

Jason Knight is the new Jamie McGrath (remember him?)

Im jumping ahead here, but with Cullen out for the next nation league game
Can Jeff and knight do a job together or is the balance off?
I m just assuming James McCarthy wont be available

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diggs246

Im jumping ahead here, but with Cullen out for the next nation league game
Can Jeff and knight do a job together or is the balance off?
I m just assuming James McCarthy wont be available

---

They could do a job but neither of them seems to be that holding Roy Keane type player that wins the ball back and gets it moving again with simple passes.

The way Luc Holtz has gone on, Luxembourg look like they're trying to turn us into arch-rivals.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diggs246

Im jumping ahead here, but with Cullen out for the next nation league game
Can Jeff and knight do a job together or is the balance off?
I m just assuming James McCarthy wont be available

---

was wondering about the suspension issue last night as it appeared on the screen last night as a couple of our players got booked.
Do the yellows actually continue into a new campaign?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jbyrne

was wondering about the suspension issue last night as it appeared on the screen last night as a couple of our players got booked.
Do the yellows actually continue into a new campaign?

---

I think the commenter said he was suspended

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Straightstory

Jason Knight is the new Jamie McGrath (remember him?)

---

I think everyone knew how good Jason Knight was and could be. I think he's a better player than McGrath and he will be Premiership player. The reverse pass to Ogbene and the deftness of the sidefoot volley to Robinson were gorgeous. I think Ronnie Whelan said in commentary that a lesser player would have set themselves up for a shot when that ball from McClean was coming towards them. Knight showed vision, awareness and technique in executing what he did. Similar point for his run into space for Hendrick and the aforementioned pass.

It definitely suited him coming into a game like that too given his fitness and industry and technique. The game was open. On the other hand, McGrath had a lot of defensive responsibility against Portugal and they are obviously a better side and didn't leave many gaps when we did get forward.

Knight is the better player. But we need options. There may be an argument for playing both of them behind Robinson against certain sides, given that Knight has shown an ability to create problems out wide at club and international level already, as well as through the middle. I heard Vinny Perth speak recently on OTB about McGrath and his running stats and how they are as good as he has ever seen. I would imagine that Knight is the same. I remember when we had the 3 man midfield of McCarthy at 6 and Hendrick and Brady at 8 at the Euros we all thought that was the future midfield for a long time. Injuries significantly impacted that for Brady and McCarthy and I'm not sure Hendrick and Brady were ever going to sustain long careers as box to box 8s playing with intensity and purpose like they did at the Euros. Whilst neither is presently at the top level that Hendrick and Brady have or could have achieved, Knight and McGrath do feel like players who are more suited to that type of position, or the more 8 and half role that the 3-4-2-1 formation creates. One or both of them is surely nailed on to start there.

Overall, I'd give a lot of credit to McGrath for his recent international performances and the step up he has made. I hope he can now progress on from the SPL and keep his club career going in the right direction.

Jeff has been great recently, but maybe knight and Cullen could be a unit. I see McGrath as a more advanced player in a 3

Also surely every single game we should play 3 at the back from now on

The other thing to note, is how well the squad seems to be getting along with each other now. They seem happy with each other, and with the management team. The vibe seems good.

This will be hugely important next Summer, because the Nations League sees them play four games in 12 days (2-14th) June, so it will feel very similar to being at a major tournament, with players in camp for maybe 3-4 weeks together.

But unlike a major tournament, squads won't be limited to 23 players, so maybe up to 30 players will get called up, to provide cover for fatigue/injuries by the 3/4th game.

That's a lot of players together, and a lot of time together to really work on patterns/styles/formation/set pieces etc

If players really buy into that, we could give the NL a real go, and maybe with a bit of luck in the draw, even look at winning the group. Do that, and it has a number of important roll over effects

1. Improves seeding for subsequent Euro draw

2. Puts Ireland in Path A in NL 24, getting us in with the big teams of Europe which will drive intetest and revenue in Irish football

3. Carry momentum into Euro qualifying

4. Hopefully see a few new players emerge for the next few years

I think theres definitely a "feel good" factor about the team now. While other Nations seem to look at the NL as an end of season pain in the backside, robbing players of holiday time, we could see it being an opportunity to get players experienced in "tournament mode"

Couple of sold out Avivas looking at good performances and we'd be well set for Euro qualifiers in 22-23

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diggs246

Jeff has been great recently, but maybe knight and Cullen could be a unit. I see McGrath as a more advanced player in a 3

Also surely every single game we should play 3 at the back from now on

---

No. It has being shown were Knight plays the better football and it is wide right in an attacking position. Both assists were so top notch. I dont wanna ser this fellow defending just let him play

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Diggs246

Jeff has been great recently, but maybe knight and Cullen could be a unit. I see McGrath as a more advanced player in a 3

Also surely every single game we should play 3 at the back from now on

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Fixer82

They could do a job but neither of them seems to be that holding Roy Keane type player that wins the ball back and gets it moving again with simple passes.

---

Un my view and I know my football. Knight is an attacking player. He needs to play around the box

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jbyrne

was wondering about the suspension issue last night as it appeared on the screen last night as a couple of our players got booked.
Do the yellows actually continue into a new campaign?

---

Doubt it... but would have carried on if we'd gotten into a play off for example. We'll start fresh again when the Nations League/Euro's begin again in June

Yeah, I think Cullen is suspended for getting two yellows, but everyone else on a yellow (which was most of the team - 8 of the starting line-up for example) you would imagine will have them quashed now.

Gavin Kilkenny might be looked at as the replacement for Cullen in the March friendlies

Is he actually suspended for the next tournament or did he TV just put it up automatically not thinking we have no games left in he tournament?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Razors left peg

Gavin Kilkenny might be looked at as the replacement for Cullen in the March friendlies

---

Great call.