What Do Ireland Need to Do to Qualify for the Euros?
The Euro’s kick off in Munich next summer. But will Ireland be there? Credit: None
Let’s be honest. It was going to be a big ask for Ireland to qualify automatically for the Euros next summer, drawn as they were in a group with World Cup runners up France, and the Netherlands.
If we are going to be even more honest, the start Stephen Kenny’s men have made has made that task all the more difficult. As you would expect, the sports betting sites have Ireland down as unfancied to make the automatic places. There is cause for optimism however.
This being a UEFA competition, the qualification criteria is far from straightforward. What is straightforward when it comes to Ireland, however, is that the top two teams from Group B will qualify for the tournament being held in Germany next summer, with the third place team going into the play-offs.
The table at the moment makes for grim reading. Logic suggested at the outset that the Netherlands and France would be fighting it out for the top two places, with Ireland and Greece hoping to sneak into that second automatic place, but realistically desperate to nail down third spot. Gibraltar, who make up the final place in the group have improved, but are viewed as nothing other than either the whipping boys, or more pertinently for the Boys in Green, a potential banana skin. A banana skin they really must not slip on.
Going into the campaign then, Kenny would have been looking at getting all six points against Gibraltar, trying to pick up a point in at least one of the fixtures against the Netherlands and France, with the crucial matches coming against Greece. It would have been seen as crucial to not lose away and go all out to pick up all three points against the 2004 Euro Champions Greece.
That isn’t how it has panned out so far, unfortunately. The performance against Didier Deschamps’ France was very impressive. That counts for nothing of course, when you leave the pitch after ninety minutes with no points on the board. What it should have done is set the team up well for their crucial fixture in Piraeus. The performance and the tactics that night were questionable at best, very poor at worst. Qualification, like tournament football, is all about taking the opportunities offered, and creating them when they are not. Kenny’s men did neither and it could cost them dear.
The Aviva will host Greece or the crucial qualifier on Friday 13th of October:
What it does mean is that the game at the Aviva on Friday the 13th of October will more than likely decide Ireland’s fate. A cold night under the floodlights will ensure the atmosphere will be every bit as passionate as the Greek fans managed in the port city.
Gustavo Poyet will know that a point might be good enough, which might put doubt in his and his players’ minds about how to approach the game. There is plenty of football to play before that weekend of fixtures, and it is certainly a possibility that Greece might slip up, or Ireland produce a vintage performance against the Dutch. What would be unforgivable is if they do what they need to do against Greece, then slip up in Gibraltar three days later.
Kenny does have a young side, and every game, both international and domestic will add to their maturity. There are other glimmers of hope on the horizon. The game in Ireland is in a healthy place, which should help produce and bring through more talent. That may be too far down the line for this campaign, but there are players on the verge of breaking into the first team who could make a real impact.
One of those is box to box midfielder Jack Taylor. After missing out in the play offs for Peterborough United, the 25 year old signed for Championship side Ipswich Town and will be keen to help the East Anglian outfit push for a Premier league place. That can only help both Taylor’s game, plus his chances of getting picked for Ireland. His energy, dynamism, plus his eye for goal is something that could be crucial when the Euro qualifiers come down to the final push.
