2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifying Group A

[Real ale Madrid]

Yes, but with one of the most shambolic performances I've ever seen from an Ireland team that won't earn us a point if we play like that another 20 times.

I know but getting a point there was good in fairness. If we perform well there and can create a few chances then surely the lack of atmosphere will give us some bit of an advantage especially as we might have spectators in LR for the return game. We are up against it so every little will help imo.

[geysir]

Generally we put in good or winning away performances first time out, even dating back to 1988

2012 The only team to beat Armenia at home
2014 Beat Kaz with a nerveless strong finish.
2016 Beat Georgia with (contender or winner) for Footie GoalOfAllTime
2018 Draw with Serbia, we looked good in the highlights
2020 Won again

[BonnieShels]

Honestly I think we'd be better looking at this from a developmental perspective. We're not going to qualify for the World Cup, even if we did somehow manage to get second in the group it's a one from four situation in the playoffs and those playoffs will be a lot tougher than the Euros playoffs we recently failed in, because only 10 teams quality automatically rather than 20. I'd say our chances of getting second in the group are four or five to one and coming through the subsequent playoffs would be eight or ten to one so we're probably realistically a one in forty chance or worse to make the finals.

Right now I'd be comfortable with coming third in this group as long as the starting team looks a lot more encouraging by the end of the campaign than it does now and there's a noticeable improvement in our execution of the gameplan and in the speed at which we move the ball.

I think the likes of Duffy, Hendrick, Hourihane, Brady and McClean are on their last legs with us in 2021. By the end of the year I'd be looking to see O'Shea, Molumby and Knight joining Connolly in the starting team if they continue to develop at their current rate. With Collins and Parrott in the squad pushing hard for a start.

We have potential but realistically it's going to be at least 2022 before we see much benefit of the talent we're producing. That's ideal timing for the Euro 2024 qualifiers though, which is maybe as well as a 24 team Euros is a more realistic goal for us right now. It's going to be a waiting game until then and it's going to be frustrating to watch at times, probably similar to the France 98 qualifiers for those who remember those games, except this time we're in a much tougher group so we won't be making the playoffs most likely.

It's a big year for Kenny though, he has a lot to prove in terms of whether he gets to take this team into the 2024 qualifiers - I have my doubts as to whether he'll survive until then because this year is likely to be a tough watch.

I agree with you. But my point is that the poster I quoted is on such an anti-Kenny rampage he seems to think getting rid of him asap we might finish third. Which is such a bizarre reason to sack a manager that it makes you wonder if they have an agenda... I wouldn't dare make that accusation though.

I don't really care if we qualify for the next world cup or not, though I would accept a heartbreaking loss in the playoffs as a show of progress.

If after the Serbia match in March we continue to see Hendrick, Brady and Duffy in the starting lineup then I'll have to return to my wish for the management team to continue in order to have progression.

My biggest worry is that the end of the 'progression experiment' with a harsh and rash sacking of SK will result in us hiring some plodder coach and the inexorable slide to nonentity will continue.

How anyone who has watched us the last 2 decades thinks that the previous 'process' must continue is a bluffer and should be ignored.

I mean, look at where Norway, Finland, Wales, Iceland and Hungary have all come from in that time.

So yeah, sacking SK to finish third is just bizarre, pointless and infuriating.

[tetsujin1979]

Considering the two lower seeds in the group, finishing third should be the absolute minimum in this group

[Bielsa´s irish]

I want them both, first to get to the WC, Im thinking of a replacement for this fellow (I trust in Kenny and I want him to get some glory), but I mean he would be in a huge pressure if he keeps on with his bad run.
The only match we played under his tenure that was just a bit better was vs Slovakia away, we dominated the game were the better team....... but remember Shane Duffy was a colossus he did the one Dunne did in Moscow. An extremis save when a goal was inevitable.

My replacements (Money will always make an entrance for this issues) being the national coach of Ireland is like being the president, or even more important, as some coaches have said over the years.

1-Eddie Howe
2-Mark Leslie Hughes
3-Bert Van Marwijk

[geysir]

I don't really care if we qualify for the next world cup or not, though I would accept a heartbreaking loss in the playoffs as a show of progress.

You don't really care if we qualify or not, yet not qualifying would be heartbreaking, but a broken heart that you could accept........ in some context?

[Bielsa´s irish]

If we dont qualify the main responsible is the manager, Kenny he is the head of the squad,
I dont buy the mantra "we dont have good enough players", not for international football.
It can work that anthem for club football where money talks. Play off spot is the aim, we were debating the last 3 months pòt 2 or pot 3, from the pot 2 the sages said Rumania, Slovakia, Serbia are better achievable options
We must build a team first, a concept and idea, and get those damn mischievous results for once!
Otherwise it would be his demise, media and public domain would ask for a replacement, inevitably...

[pineapple stu]

You don't really care if we qualify or not, yet not qualifying would be heartbreaking, but a broken heart that you could accept........ in some context?

I think you've mis-read the bauld Bonnie - he doesn't say "not qualifying would be heartbreaking". He does say that even a Henry handball play-off extra-time defeat would, in the bigger picture, be a sign of progress and overall a good outcome from the group.

(Is my reading of the post anyway)

[Kingdom]

G1: Portugal; Serbia, Ireland;
G2: Spain; Sweden;
G3: Italy; Switzerland;
G4: France; Ukraine, Finland, Bosnia;
G5: Belgium; Wales, Czechia;
G6: Denmark; Austria , Scotland, Israel;
G7:Netherlands; Turkey, Norway;
G8: Croatia, Russia; Slovakia;
G9: England; Poland;
G10: Germany; Romania, Iceland

The above are what I would consider the bona-fide group winners (only the Croat group where I think it's debatable...maybe the English but I can't see it really.
The challengers for second are clear cut in most groups.

The play-off round is seeded on the basis of the place in the table of runners-up based on your group results (The additional two teams from the NL are unseeded anyway), so a tough group like the Croatians, or Ukraine's, or the Scots, is going to count against you in that final ranking. Removing the pot 6 teams as per normal, it makes some of the groups downright nasty in that respect. I'm much happier having to worry about lux & Azerbaijan, than Nth Macedonia and Armenia, or Bosnia and the Kazakhs.
The flip-side of that consideration is the amount of points that a 2nd place team might take from a top seed, and I don't think there's too much to worry about.
If you consider that we'll have to 4 times against the weaker seeds, and get one positive result extra along the way (assume a win against Serbia and a draw in one of the three other games) and we'd end up with 16 points. In that respect, I think if we are in the running for a second place spot, I reckon we've a good chance of being seeded.

In light of the groups, I could see the 2nd place table being ranked like:

G3: Switzerland;
G2: Sweden;
G1: Serbia, Ireland;
G5: Wales, Czechia;;
G9: Poland;
G4: Ukraine, Finland, Bosnia;

G6: Austria , Scotland, Israel;
G7: Turkey, Norway;
G8: Croatia, Russia; Slovakia;
G10:Romania, Iceland
NL winner 1
NL winner 2

The NL teams will be either Wales or Czechia, and Hungary. It's arguable on the lose specualtion above whether it matters much being seeded or not. Once you are seeded, or unseeded for that matter, its an open draw.
So (and making some educated guesses), in theory you could have:

One-legged playoff semifinal:
--------------------------------------> One-legged playoff final:
Switzerland vs Russia
Ukraine vs Turkey
----------------------------------------------->Swi vs Ukr
Ireland vs Czechia
Wales vs Hungary
----------------------------------------------> Ire vs Hun
Poland vs Austria
Sweden vs Romania
----------------------------------------------> Pol vs Swe


Of course, it could be much much worse than that. But given the group we're in, having to come out with a positive balance from two games against Serbia, and in one off games against Czechia and Hungary, that's not the worst possibility, when you look at perhaps Switzerland, who'll have faced the North, Bulgaria, Russia and Ukraine, to qualify, perhaps having only just got eliminated by a point or goal-difference in the group stage by Italy.

Obviously, the random draw element that I've hypothesised on, is totally unpredictable (isn't that right FIFEFA?), but the rest is solid.

[elatedscum]

G6: Denmark; Austria , Scotland, Israel;

I could see Austria winning the group. Denmark are favourites but Denmark aren't world beaters and Austria have a few quality lads. Alaba is world class and the likes of Lienhart, Baumgartner, Sabitzer and Grbic are just starting to enter their peak years. Arnautovic is probably still able to perform on occasion.

[weldoninhio]

Where are people getting this ridiculous idea that we’ll pick up 4 points from the top two teams?? Have you missed the previous 8 games??

[seanfhear]

Where are people getting this ridiculous idea that we’ll pick up 4 points from the top two teams?? Have you missed the previous 8 games??

Tides Turn.

[IsMiseSean]

Where are people getting this ridiculous idea that we’ll pick up 4 points from the top two teams?? Have you missed the previous 8 games??

I reckon we'll be lucky to get two points from the games against Portugal & Serbia.

That's me being positive btw.

[Bielsa´s irish]

I could see Austria winning the group. Denmark are favourites but Denmark aren't world beaters and Austria have a few quality lads. Alaba is world class and the likes of Lienhart, Baumgartner, Sabitzer and Grbic are just starting to enter their peak years. Arnautovic is probably still able to perform on occasion.

Austrians are muck at football since the last 35 years or so, same for Hungary.

[Bielsa´s irish]

I reckon we'll be lucky to get two points from the games against Portugal & Serbia.

That's me being positive btw.

I don't want to preach about it, the Irish team has earned great respect and recognition internationally over the past 40 years in football. Just don't give away this benefit, this value. These Irish footballers as a staff represent the Irish people and their culture, a responsibility and a quest. To all of your own Johnnie Giles, Liam Bradys, Stapletons, Georgie Bests and Roy Keanes that your sacred land gave as a shiny, sparky gift to the football gods. Slap the world of football as a wake-up call, on the identity of Irish football, for that they must address and approach a brave and courageous performance and, you know, not overestimate or disrespect rivals, we've gotta have to press and attack in a definitive attitude , let's be a tough, rough nuisance for Portugal and the Serbs, you know fear no one, then we should be fine, of course Kenny, you know man, he should play with the best players available, in the proudest, bravest form and smart, you must play them with streetwise brains of football and as tight, compact and cohesive a unit as we can get, between defense, midfield and attacking section, with the most solid formation.

[Bungle]

Austria with Alaba and a host of very good Bundesliga and Salzburg players. Austrian teams doing quite well in Europe.

Hungary with some very good Bundesliga players and a lad playing with Salzburg who is one of the best young players in Europe. Also Fernancvaros in the Champions League.

I'd take their kind of "muck" right now.

[Bielsa´s irish]

the what? Im speaking in english ....so im gonna use english slang, btw i dont speak latin american I speak french tango slang in castellano which is in fact the rioplatense spanish (Argentina and Uruguay) we as a language have nothing to do with your vision of latin america

[Bielsa´s irish]

Austria with Alaba and a host of very good Bundesliga and Salzburg players. Austrian teams doing quite well in Europe.


Hungary with some very good Bundesliga players and a lad playing with Salzburg who is one of the best young players in Europe. Also Fernancvaros in the Champions League.

I'd take their kind of "muck" right now.

Yeah Got it, but the other fellow's garden is always greener, Austria got the better of Ireland under Trapatonni's tenure, I dont rate them to win over that danish group,

[weldoninhio]

Tides Turn.

The best indicator of future performance is past performances.

[tetsujin1979]

Just ask Nokia.