HEIMIR HALLGRIMSSON SAID his players’ nerves and anxiety played into Ireland’s “passive” first-half showing against Armenia. 

Ireland failed to have a shot on target in the opening 45 minutes, and didn’t even have the majority of possession. The game however swung on Tigran Barsegyan’s red card early in the second half, for a daft headbutt on Finn Azaz. Evan Ferguson thus fired Ireland to a 1-0 win.

“It seemed to take pressure off our team”, said Hallgrimsson of the sending off. 

“Playing one man up released that nervousness and we started to be more brave, won the ball higher up the pitch. In possession we found better spaces but it was more the bravery we showed after the sending off and obviously the crowd helped us.

“Nobody wanted to make a mistake, when we jumped and pressed in the first half it looked we were not in sync like we were in Portugal. We were not in sync in the first half and I relay that to nerves, when you become nervous you can become passive when you want to be secure.”

Hallgrimsson denied the first-half passivity was down to his team selection, which saw Ireland retain their back-five system that was deployed in Portugal. 

“The formation doesn’t mean passive or defensive or attacking. We obviously wanted our full backs to be higher in the first half and you saw that in the second half when we played them higher. It was more about ball possession, they had more ball possession in the first half. 

“Listen, we said before this camp we would take a scrappy 1-0 win, and it was a scrappy 1-0 win. We can’t be unhappy. We have been complaining about second game syndrome, you must be happy we won the second game now. We have been complaining about conceding early, we didn’t concede at all. We kept a clean sheet, that’s a good step. We will take the positives and carry on to the next window.

“You decide whether to see the glass is half-empty of half-full. That’s your job. I don’t think it matters what I say here, you will write what you think. The power of the media is huge. It’s your decision whether you see the glass half-empty or half-full.”

He meanwhile insisted that Hungary’s last-gasp equaliser against Portugal does not change Ireland’s mindset ahead of the final round of games next month. Ireland not trail Hungary by a point, meaning if Hungary win their next game away to Armenia, Ireland must get at least a draw at home to Portugal to have any mathematical chance of finishing second going to Budapest. 

“It doesn’t change anything”, said Hallgrimsson. “We knew we had to go to Hungary and win, it looks like we need a point against Portugal, or Armenia will do us a favour in Yerevan. This Armenian team is no rollover, they a have big heart. 

“If you watch the game in Hungary, they matched Hungary absolutely, and Hungary lucky to go away with a win there.” 

Armenia manager Yeghishe Melikyan naturally admitted the game swung on the red card. 

“The red card changed the game”, he said. “It was a mistake. He took responsibility. He said sorry to the whole dressing room. But, if a player makes a mistake, it is also my mistake and for that I apologise.

“If there was no red card and we played 11 v 11 I think we could have gotten a good result. I thought we could have won but we must go forward and I think we can get good results in the near future.”