1. Wes Hoolahan should still remain an integral member of the Irish side
IF THERE WERE any doubts, Wes Hoolahan’s display last night proved that he remains a vital member of the Irish side.
In the first half in particular, the Norwich star was key to Ireland controlling the game in a way they never did against Georgia.
Granted, it was against probably the worst team in the group and a side ranked 161st in the world, but teams including Austria, Russia and Sweden have found it very difficult against the Moldovans in the recent past.
Consequently, despite the disastrous defensive mishap that threatened to undermine all Ireland’s good work, from an attacking perspective, it was one of the better displays of the O’Neill era.
Indeed, aside from matches against Gibraltar, it is the first competitive fixture in which Ireland have scored more than two goals since O’Neill took over and just the second time they have won a match by more than a one-goal margin (the Euro 2016 playoff victory against Bosnia was the other game).
And Hoolahan, along with James McClean, was key to most of Ireland’s brightest moments, laying on an exquisite pass for the opener and linking up cleverly with Seamus Coleman for the third.
The 34-year-old’s ability to play two games in a short space of time remains open to question and was perhaps part of the reason why he was left out of the Georgia match.
Nevertheless, Hoolahan certainly came good on Sunday night, as he continues to show that when Ireland are in need of a goal and some creative spark, there is no better man to have on the field.
2. Ireland good enough to win Group D
If last night’s games proved anything, it’s that there are no great teams in Group D.
Indeed, if Sunday’s match in Cardiff is anything to go by, even the gap in quality between the first and sixth-seeded teams is minimal.
Wales will remain favourites owing to their incredible exploits in the summer, but the draw with the Georgians exposed their limitations.
It remains early days with just three games apiece played and a draw would certainly be considered a decent result for Ireland away to Austria next month, but the even the six points the team has achieved over the past week in hindsight seems like nothing to be sniffed at.
Ireland are currently joint top of their group with Serbia, and given that they managed to earn a point in Belgrade last month despite producing one of their worst displays with the ball in recent memory, the Boys in Green will fancy their chances when they host Slavoljub Muslin’s side on 5 September, 2017.
Consequently, the group currently looks wide open, with at least five of the six teams appearing capable of taking points off anyone else.
Given that their last three World Cup qualification campaigns had groups that featured Germany, Italy and France respectively, it’s been a while since automatic qualification felt like such a realistic possibility for Ireland, even if it is more a hope than an expectation at this early stage.
3. Be patient with Shane Duffy
Speaking in The Irish Sun recently, Richard Dunne urged people to be patient with Shane Duffy.
Dunne emphasised how the 24-year-old Derry native is still learning the game and international football is a considerable step up in quality for somebody who has spent almost all his career in England’s lower leagues.
And Duffy has plenty in common with Dunne aside from their similarly imposing stature and defensive prowess. Both were let go by Everton at a young age, and like the Brighton defender, the ex-Man City man, despite being one of the greatest centre-backs this country has ever produced, also made plenty of mistakes in his time, as his standing as the Premier League’s highest own goal scorer of all time attests.
And it was almost as if the City legend could see into the future, because following an impressive display in the 1-0 win over Georgia, Duffy — if truth be told — had a bit of a nightmare in Moldova on Sunday evening.
The former Blackburn defender was at fault for the hosts’ only goal. He was caught badly out of position, as Igor Bugayev subsequently exploited the space in behind on the counter-attack before coolly slotting home the equaliser.
It got worse for Duffy thereafter, as he looked nerve-ridden all night, and could have conceded a penalty were it not for an offside in the build up as he knocked over a Moldovan opponent with a wild, reckless swing of his right foot.
There will no doubt be calls for at least one of John O’Shea or Richard Keogh to be recalled as a result of this inept performance, but Duffy is comfortably Ireland’s most talented young centre-back and punishing him severely for one bad game would risk seriously damaging his confidence.
At both club and international level, Duffy has done enough in recent months to show that he is a talented defender who warrants faith in his ability, so perhaps O’Neill will take heed of Dunne’s advice.
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