EILEEN GLEESON AND Katie McCabe say tomorrow’s Euro 2025 qualifying showdown against England at the Aviva Stadium is “just another step in our journey”.
The Irish head coach and captain wouldn’t be drawn into talk on significance and rivalry as they face the European champions in a competitive fixture for the first time since 1987.
“It is a huge game,” Gleeson said. “A really big game, really exciting. It’s in the Aviva, home crowd. Over 30,000 tickets sold. But it’s another big step along the way in the qualifying campaign.”
“It’s just another game for us,” McCabe added. “It’s just another step in our journey in qualification for the Euros.
“We know it’s going to be tough, that’s what we’re made of, we’re made of strong stuff as Ireland and as a nation.
“We are at home, over 30,000 tickets sold, and that buzz that the fans create for us whether in Tallaght or at the Aviva is so special to us and we feel that when we step onto the pitch, we feel that we’ve got a stadium behind us and it’s going to be massively important for us tomorrow night.
“So if you do have a ticket, make sure you’re coming and watching us, because it will be crucial in helping us tomorrow.”
Jess Ziu has been ruled out with a hamstring issue, and the West Ham wide player is replaced in the squad by Glasgow City’s Emily Whelan.
Gleeson is waiting for a final update on Amber Barrett, after the Standard Liege striker limped off with a muscle injury in Friday night’s 1-0 defeat to France.
McCabe hailed “some shift” in Metz and believes the Girls In Green can compete in Group A3. England and Sweden drew 1-1 at Wembley Stadium on Friday.
“We’re realistic, but we always believe we can go and beat anyone on our day, we’ve got the quality, we’ve got a world-class goalkeeper, how we set up, the art of defending at times.
“We’ve shown our quality in how we can attack in previous games throughout the Nations League so it’s about finding the balance and for us against these big teams, these big nations, there is only a couple of moments at this level as well so we just need to make sure we’re on it tomorrow and decisive in those moments.”
Gleeson said she saw “no surprises” from the Lionesses on Friday, and that the Irish crowd will be “absolutely huge”.
“We know England. They are a team that dominates possession. They’re very aggressive, high lines, no surprises, but obviously they’re still bringing their quality.”
McCabe, meanwhile, said she had not spoken to her Arsenal team-mates Leah Williamson, Lotte Wubben-Moy, Beth Mead or Alessia Russo ahead of the clash.
“My Arsenal teammates pose a lot of threats. They’re world-class players but so is the rest of the squad. They’re not European champions for no reason. They’ve got quality all over their squad and obviously we’ll be looking to nullify that on tomorrow night. As I said, there’s not just the Arsenal girls to look out for. They’ve got a range of quality in players. We’ll make sure to obviously be keeping their strengths at bay.”
The Dubliner could shed no further light on Arsenal’s post-season friendly against Australia, which could mean a gruelling 34,000km round-trip before Ireland’s double-header against Sweden next month.
“I’ve no idea, obviously Arsenal have committed to a trip Down Under in Melbourne and as far as I know, nothing has been set in stone yet in terms of squad and stuff. My full focus is on tomorrow, it’s a long way away.
“Look myself and my teammates are all in the same position, we all have qualifiers post the Australian trip. I’m an Arsenal player, I’m contracted to play for Arsenal and of course if they need me to play, then I’ll be playing for them.”
