BORE OF THE SAME
Ireland pick up a point at last but it’s another tough watch for fans
CHASTENING as the World Cup playoff defeat was, it wasn’t an accurate barometer of the gulf between these two sides.
Ireland – now without a win in their last eight games – are not five goals inferior to Denmark as a rule. Christian Eriksen and his sublime hat-trick proved the difference that night but here, the teams were fighting off level weights without the injured Spurs man on the scene. The trouble for Irish fans is that expectations are now so low with Martin O’neill’s team that few will have come away surprised by the performance or the re- Normal order was resumed, you might say. And that’s nothing to brag about.
Whistles and jeers from the terraces were unmistakable until a pulse was discovered late on, sparked by a Cyrus Christie shot and also Callum Robinson’s arrival.
Sure, Ireland were hard to break down at times.
But they also lived on the seat of their pants with the Danes hitting the post and Harry Arter clearing off the line as the visitors finished with 15 attempts on goal compared to Ireland’s three.
But there wasn’t a stand out performance among the green shirts on a night O’neill had hoped to re-energise a Green Army growing weary of what they’re witnessing of late.
True to his word, O’neill sided with wing backs with Wolves ace Matt Doherty making his competitive bow on the right and James Mcclean performing the same duties on the left, where his natural instincts were curtailed.
When Enda Stevens replaced Callum O’dowda at the break, Mcclean had licence to play off the front foot but Ireland never got motoring.
It was not a conventional 3-5-2 formation Ireland started with, more so a bizarre 3-6-1 that flirted with a diamond but also lent itself to confusion.
For starters, lone striker Shane Long ought to have had a partner alongside him but, not for the first time, was left isolated. Jeff Hensult. drick played at the tip of the diamond but he and Long were rarely in tandem.
Much is made of Long’s poor scoring return having last bagged an Irish goal in Moldova two years ago. But context is required too, and the Southampton man must be doing his nut. Yet again crosses into the box were non-existent.
He put in a thankless shift and was fouled almost every time he touched the ball but collectively Ireland struggled to generate a creative spark and failed to register a shot of note from open play until the closing 20 minutes.
Mind you, Hendrick would have sparked uproar in visiting ranks had he
stuck away his fifth minute chance. When Arter went down injured, the Danes downed tools. But Hendrick robbed Thomas Delaney before bearing down on goal.
Five-year-olds are taught to play the whistle and Denmark should have done the same. As it happened, the Burnley man made a hash of his finish.
Perhaps spurred on by Alan Shearer’s criticism of him last weekend, Christie played with tremendous energy in midfield but until late on, little of it was used to drive Ireland near a Danish box growing cobwebs.
The Danes were close to snatching a lead moments after Shane Duffy awkwardly topped a header in a great position from a whipped Hendrick free.
First, Doherty made a mess dealing with a Henrik Dalsgaard cross to the back post and Mathias Jorgensen ought to have scored. And in injury-time, Pione Sisto shaved the post with a sweet shot on the turn from the edge of the box.
After the break, Arter cleared off the line to deny skipper Simon Kjaer.
It was Arter’s only telling act on an unremarkable return to the fold after his bust-up with Roy Keane. He was booked early on for a crazy tackle, but his replacement Robinson provided spark in the final third.
After noticeable whistles and jeers at the pedestrian play, fans found their voice late on. Christie sparked their urgings with a stinging drive that had Schmeichel at full stretch.
Duffy’s late booking for a dive summed up another frustrating night for Ireland. A win over Wales on Tuesday might just paper over the cracks.