SOMETIMES THE statistics in football can be as damning as the results, but for Giovanni Trapattoni and his players last night in Moscow they didn’t even start to tell the story of a remarkable night in Ireland’s campaign to qualify for next summer’s European Championship finals.
Having made the journey to the Russian capital still trying to put a brave face on the events of last Friday night and claiming, somewhat optimistically, to be targeting a win, the Italian looked on from the sidelines at the Luzhniki stadium as his side, outplayed from the first minute to the last by a side that managed 18 clear-cut chances to Ireland’s rather tame two and enjoyed a near monopoly of the possession, secured the most unlikely of draws.
Richard Dunne turned in what will go down as one of the performances of his international career and Shay Given shook off the back trouble that had made him a doubt for the game 48 hours earlier to produce a string of crucial saves. The manager hailed the pair as “fantastic” afterwards, but praised just about everyone else too.
The Irish, both on the pitch and in the stands, celebrated the final whistle as though it marked the end of a famous victory, but as they filed out of the stadium and into the chilly Moscow night it was clear that Trapattoni and his men appreciated that many things still had to go their way if they were to qualify.
What a ride it must have been then when word began to filter through that Armenia had put another piece of the jigsaw in place. Their four second-half goals delivered a shock win in Zilina over a Slovakia side that Ireland failed to beat in two attempts.
Suddenly, Ireland’s qualification is a four-way tussle for top spot and a play-off place that Ireland might yet win outright if they can win their two games next month.