Those charged with selling tickets for tonight’s Republic of Ireland-Wales Nations League match in Dublin probably felt they had a job on their hands, and that was before yesterday. Subdued Irish form, added to Gareth Bale’s absence, was certainly not fuelling sales, so Aaron Ramsey’s withdrawal – his wife had twins on Saturday – is another loss. With young star Ethan Ampadu also missing, it is not just Ryan Giggs arriving short, the occasion apparently lacks zip.
That should change at kick-off, however. These Welsh omissions mean the onus is on Martin O’Neill’s team and they present Ireland with an opportunity. Saturday’s numb 0-0 draw with Denmark, with one Irish shot on target in the 90 minutes, was low on entertainment, but a home victory would take the Republic to second in the Nations League group, and give them a chance of winning it, as unlikely as that sounds. Victory would also bring back some lost approval from wavering fans.
To this end, O’Neill said the Irish performance will be “front foot”, a term Ben Davies repeated of Welsh intentions. Admittedly neither man was thumping the desk when this was said, indeed O’Neill added: “We’ve got to try and be more creative, if we can be. He said Ireland would “try to dictate the game”, although “it doesn’t always work out like that.”
‘We’re short’
O’Neill was never going to let rhetoric cloud his realism and there was another instance at the Irish base on the edge of Dublin when he used the word “short”. This was not about Wales or the occasion, but about his squad. “Technically, we’re short,” he said. “We know that. On technical ability, we’re short, and I think everybody can see that. But we’re not short of heart.”
He praised his players for their “incredible willingness… none more so than James McClean, who broke his wrist in training the day before we played Wales and was actually looking at an injection to see if he could play. James is obviously sometimes not right in the head.”
The debate in Irish football, one which was not lessened by Saturday’s display, centres on creativity, individual and collective. O’Neill (right) went back to basics against Denmark. The concession of nine goals in the previous two competitive matches demanded as much. The clean sheet has been clutched at as the beginning of a rebuilding process founded on undisguised pragmatism.
Even when it was put to him that the Danish midfielder Thomas Delaney had called Ireland’s tactics “primitive”, O’Neill did not offer a fierce rebuttal. He merely pointed out that without Christian Eriksen, Denmark can rely on physicality.
Goal drought
If conceding goals has been, at least temporarily, addressed, it is now about the other end. Only once in their last 11 competitive games have the Irish scored twice – against Moldova. Shane Long, whose last Ireland goal was in October 2016, is expected to start once again with the Preston North End pair Callum Robinson and Sean Maguire likely to be seen at some stage.
For the Welsh, the contest seems less tense, perhaps because they defeated Ireland 4-1 in Cardiff last month. But if Wales lose, there will be just one match left – at home to Denmark – and Wales could yet finish bottom. Giggs thinks that sporting uncertainty is one of the “positives” of the Nations League. “If we win,” he began, “we’re top of the group and we’d have an excellent chance of topping the group at the end of it.”
No Bale or Ramsey, who both played when the countries met in the rugged 0-0 World Cup qualifier here last March, makes Giggs’ task harder. Wales have won only three competitive games without Bale since he made his debut in 2006. Davies has touted David Brooks as being capable of replacing Bale, quite a compliment to the Bournemouth 21 year-old from Warrington. Giggs appeared relaxed, even when he said Bale will probably be fit for Real Madrid at the weekend. His focus is on who is here and on the 2,700 travelling fans.“I want them to go back excited,” Giggs said. “We want to play football the right way.” But then he echoed O’Neill: “You have to earn the right.”
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