For the second-straight home game, a night that threatened to descend to another bout of quiet recrimination instead jacknifed on an idiotic opposition red card. It was Roland Sallai last month and tonight it was Tigran Barsegyan who saw red, liberating Ireland from their fear and worry to seal a vital 1-0 qualifier win through Evan Ferguson’s goal.
Barsegyan tonight wrote himself into the Hall of Fame of non-Irish football figures to do us a great service, joining the likes of Gary Makay and Monique, the woman who drew the lots at Italia ’90 that sent us through to play Romania rather than West Germany.
For without Barsegyan’s mad red card early in the second half, who knows what noxious enterprise this would have become. Instead the red card utterly freed Ireland of pressure, and their only real lament from the game was that they did not greatly buttress their goal difference.
But nonetheless, this is a result which keeps Ireland alive going into the final round of qualifiers, although Hungary’s last gasp 2-2 draw away to Portugal was an extremely unhelpful coda to the night. Ireland now likely need to get at least a point at home to Portugal to have anything even on the line in the group’s crescendo in Budapest.
This victory also snaps an extraordinary statistic: this was Ireland’s first home win in a World Cup qualifier for eight years, since beating Moldova 2-0 under Martin O’Neill.
Though that didn’t feel likely at half-time, when Ireland trudged off to a wreath of boos.
Hallgrimsson was asked yesterday of the need to make a fast start, and he responded by saying, no, that Ireland needed to make a “solid” start. And by solid he evidently meant wretched and fearful.
Having chucked out the back five system he inherited from his predecessor and his assistant’s interregnum, Hallgrimsson has suddenly returned to it. Where using it away to Portugal was understandable, using it at home to Armenia was cowardly. There may have been complex tactical justifications for setting up in this way, but it set entirely the wrong tone.
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Ireland pressed poorly away to Armenia but when they did it well, they profited from it, most obviously when Nathan Collins jumped to win the ball back to kickstart the move that ended with Evan Ferguson’s goal. But in tonight’s first half they sat off Armenia, disguising patience as passivity. The Aviva crowd – many of who were obligated to be here under the FAI’s cynical selling of tickets in bulk for all three qualifiers – weren’t buying it, chafing at Armenia’s long spells of possession.
Ireland ended the first half with zero shots on target and 46% possession, and it was instead Armenia who had the best chance of a truly deadening 45 minutes: Ireland were somehow caught open amid another treacly attack, and Eduard Spertsyan was found unmarked at Ireland’s back post. He took the high-tariff option, firing a first-time volley wide.
Ireland’s attack was meanwhile lobotomised. The game plan was to play long balls to Festy Ebosele and Evan Ferguson, in the hope that Ebosele would win a 50/50 and sally forth. They were otherwise terrified of countering quickly, presumably for fear of being caught out themselves.
Hallgrimsson didn’t make any changes at half-time though Coleman emerged determined to try and provoke his team to life, barging into the Armenian goalkeeper and later pumping his arms toward the crowd.
The crowd had instead played the long game. When Tigran Barseghyan took a head knock in the first half, he stayed on the pitch to be bandaged up, much to the crowd’s ire. He was jeered as he played on, which further scrambled his head. And having traded insults with the crowd, he then lost his glued-together head by butting it into the face of Finn Azaz. It was the second-straight home game in which Ireland’s opponent had a man sent off after 52 minutes. Maybe the baleful Gods are finally backing off us after these long years of oppression.
Tigran Barseghyan is shown a red card. Ryan Byrne / INPHO
Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO
Hallgrimsson didn’t immediately remove any of his surplus centre-halves, and two of them came quickly came close to scoring. First Nathan Collins saw his looping header brilliantly clawed onto the bar by Avagyan, and moments later O’Shea met a corner sweetly only to be denied by a stunning Avagyan reaction. Collins was unfortunate that the rebound didn’t fall to his feet.
Hallgrimsson introduced Ogbene and Parrott for Coleman and Ebosele but he did not change his system.
After his long isolation period against Portugal and in the first half tonight, a chance finally fell Ferguson’s way, but he blasted his shot too close to the goalkeeper. No matter. Soon after, Ireland finally showed an ability to think on their feet by taking a corner quickly, with Smallbone floating a terrific cross into the six-yard box for Ferguson, who glanced the ball in. It was the fourth-straight home start in which Ferguson scored, becoming the first Irish player to do so since Robbie Keane did so 11 years ago.
Ferguson celebrated with a sense of impatience, some of his team-mates did so out of massive relief.
Ireland had a chance to burnish their goal difference – which could be crucial come the endgame of this group – but failed to do so, again thanks to some Avagyan heroics, denying substitute Adam Idah from close range after a smart Manning cross. Idah’s contact was flimsy, though, and for a guy who has been chafing at his bit-part role, this was a missed chance in more sense than one.
Idah did have the ball in the net before the end, but his rifled finish was extinguished for offside. Ireland spent six minutes of stoppage time butchering a series of presentable chances,
But given how rare it is for Ireland to simply win these games at home, it would be absurd of us to be complaining about any margin of victory.
Ireland battle on, limping though they may be.
Republic of Ireland: Caoimhín Kelleher; Seamus Coleman (Chiedozie Ogbene, 64′); Jake O’Brien, Nathan Collins, Dara O’Shea; Ryan Manning; Jayson Molumby, Will Smallbone (Jack Taylor, 80′); Festy Ebosele (Troy Parrott, 64′), Finn Azaz; Evan Ferguson (Adam Idah, 80′)
Armenia: Henri Avagyan; Kamo Hovhannisyan; Sergei Muradian, Styopa Mkrtchyan, Erik Piloyan (Vahan Bichakhchyan, 80′); Nayair Tiknizyan (Edgar Grigoryan, 71′); Ugochukwu Iwu, Eduard Spertsyan, Tigran Barseghyan; Zhirayr Shaghoyan (Lucas Zelarayan, HT), Grant-Leon Ranos (Artur Miranyan, 70′)
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Ireland make most of another opposition sending off to seal crucial Armenian win
Republic of Ireland 1
Armenia 0
BETTER TO BE lucky to allow you be good.
For the second-straight home game, a night that threatened to descend to another bout of quiet recrimination instead jacknifed on an idiotic opposition red card. It was Roland Sallai last month and tonight it was Tigran Barsegyan who saw red, liberating Ireland from their fear and worry to seal a vital 1-0 qualifier win through Evan Ferguson’s goal.
Barsegyan tonight wrote himself into the Hall of Fame of non-Irish football figures to do us a great service, joining the likes of Gary Makay and Monique, the woman who drew the lots at Italia ’90 that sent us through to play Romania rather than West Germany.
For without Barsegyan’s mad red card early in the second half, who knows what noxious enterprise this would have become. Instead the red card utterly freed Ireland of pressure, and their only real lament from the game was that they did not greatly buttress their goal difference.
But nonetheless, this is a result which keeps Ireland alive going into the final round of qualifiers, although Hungary’s last gasp 2-2 draw away to Portugal was an extremely unhelpful coda to the night. Ireland now likely need to get at least a point at home to Portugal to have anything even on the line in the group’s crescendo in Budapest.
This victory also snaps an extraordinary statistic: this was Ireland’s first home win in a World Cup qualifier for eight years, since beating Moldova 2-0 under Martin O’Neill.
Though that didn’t feel likely at half-time, when Ireland trudged off to a wreath of boos.
Hallgrimsson was asked yesterday of the need to make a fast start, and he responded by saying, no, that Ireland needed to make a “solid” start. And by solid he evidently meant wretched and fearful.
Having chucked out the back five system he inherited from his predecessor and his assistant’s interregnum, Hallgrimsson has suddenly returned to it. Where using it away to Portugal was understandable, using it at home to Armenia was cowardly. There may have been complex tactical justifications for setting up in this way, but it set entirely the wrong tone.
Ireland pressed poorly away to Armenia but when they did it well, they profited from it, most obviously when Nathan Collins jumped to win the ball back to kickstart the move that ended with Evan Ferguson’s goal. But in tonight’s first half they sat off Armenia, disguising patience as passivity. The Aviva crowd – many of who were obligated to be here under the FAI’s cynical selling of tickets in bulk for all three qualifiers – weren’t buying it, chafing at Armenia’s long spells of possession.
Ireland ended the first half with zero shots on target and 46% possession, and it was instead Armenia who had the best chance of a truly deadening 45 minutes: Ireland were somehow caught open amid another treacly attack, and Eduard Spertsyan was found unmarked at Ireland’s back post. He took the high-tariff option, firing a first-time volley wide.
Ireland’s attack was meanwhile lobotomised. The game plan was to play long balls to Festy Ebosele and Evan Ferguson, in the hope that Ebosele would win a 50/50 and sally forth. They were otherwise terrified of countering quickly, presumably for fear of being caught out themselves.
Hallgrimsson didn’t make any changes at half-time though Coleman emerged determined to try and provoke his team to life, barging into the Armenian goalkeeper and later pumping his arms toward the crowd.
The crowd had instead played the long game. When Tigran Barseghyan took a head knock in the first half, he stayed on the pitch to be bandaged up, much to the crowd’s ire. He was jeered as he played on, which further scrambled his head. And having traded insults with the crowd, he then lost his glued-together head by butting it into the face of Finn Azaz. It was the second-straight home game in which Ireland’s opponent had a man sent off after 52 minutes. Maybe the baleful Gods are finally backing off us after these long years of oppression.
Hallgrimsson didn’t immediately remove any of his surplus centre-halves, and two of them came quickly came close to scoring. First Nathan Collins saw his looping header brilliantly clawed onto the bar by Avagyan, and moments later O’Shea met a corner sweetly only to be denied by a stunning Avagyan reaction. Collins was unfortunate that the rebound didn’t fall to his feet.
Hallgrimsson introduced Ogbene and Parrott for Coleman and Ebosele but he did not change his system.
After his long isolation period against Portugal and in the first half tonight, a chance finally fell Ferguson’s way, but he blasted his shot too close to the goalkeeper. No matter. Soon after, Ireland finally showed an ability to think on their feet by taking a corner quickly, with Smallbone floating a terrific cross into the six-yard box for Ferguson, who glanced the ball in. It was the fourth-straight home start in which Ferguson scored, becoming the first Irish player to do so since Robbie Keane did so 11 years ago.
Ferguson celebrated with a sense of impatience, some of his team-mates did so out of massive relief.
Ireland had a chance to burnish their goal difference – which could be crucial come the endgame of this group – but failed to do so, again thanks to some Avagyan heroics, denying substitute Adam Idah from close range after a smart Manning cross. Idah’s contact was flimsy, though, and for a guy who has been chafing at his bit-part role, this was a missed chance in more sense than one.
Idah did have the ball in the net before the end, but his rifled finish was extinguished for offside. Ireland spent six minutes of stoppage time butchering a series of presentable chances,
But given how rare it is for Ireland to simply win these games at home, it would be absurd of us to be complaining about any margin of victory.
Ireland battle on, limping though they may be.
Republic of Ireland: Caoimhín Kelleher; Seamus Coleman (Chiedozie Ogbene, 64′); Jake O’Brien, Nathan Collins, Dara O’Shea; Ryan Manning; Jayson Molumby, Will Smallbone (Jack Taylor, 80′); Festy Ebosele (Troy Parrott, 64′), Finn Azaz; Evan Ferguson (Adam Idah, 80′)
Armenia: Henri Avagyan; Kamo Hovhannisyan; Sergei Muradian, Styopa Mkrtchyan, Erik Piloyan (Vahan Bichakhchyan, 80′); Nayair Tiknizyan (Edgar Grigoryan, 71′); Ugochukwu Iwu, Eduard Spertsyan, Tigran Barseghyan; Zhirayr Shaghoyan (Lucas Zelarayan, HT), Grant-Leon Ranos (Artur Miranyan, 70′)
Referee: Benoit Bastien (France)
Attendance: 42,292
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