Ireland 2 Hungary 1 (FT)
Full-time: Ireland 2 Hungary 1
That’s that! Hungary can’t fashion a late chance and they earn a smash and grab win. It was a dire game low on quality but, after 90 minutes of mediocrity, the feeling in the Aviva is all of a sudden a lot different after that Parrott winner.
It’s a first goal for Ireland since November, and a first win since October! Penny for your thoughts Marc Canham and John O’Shea?
GOAL IRELAND
Troy Parrott wins it at the death! Hungary overcommit at the corner and Styles is caught in possession in midfield. That leaves Parrott and Szmodics both running unopposed at the ‘keeper. Parrott could square to Szmodics for the tap in, but he tries to go low. It’s actually a poor effort, the ‘keeper gets a hand on it but it loops up and into the net. A touch of good fortune, both with the strike and with the fact that Ireland are set to win the game.
90+1 mins: That’s sensational from Coleman. He’s initially ball-watching and is caught out by a pass over the top. The recovery from the mistake is good as a lunging tackle takes the ball out for a corner and denies Hungary a good chance.
Three additional minutes will be played.
90 mins: Styles of Hungary is now booked after chopping down Knight from behind. It was a promising attacking opportunity.
CHANCE! Off the free-kick, Ireland get the ball into the box. Coleman gets a volley away on the edge of the box but he pulls it wide.
Will Smallbone is named player of the match. Interesting call that, giving it to a midfield player in such a poor attacking game. I’d have gone Kelleher, he’s been very good in the Irish goal.
85 mins: It’s getting tetchy now. Szmodics gives away a foul, it’s clearly a shoulder barge, but then starts screaming at the referee. Yellow card for dissent.
82 mins: Is this game opening up in the final 10 minutes? Szoboszlai skips past Knight beautifully before teeing up Knight on the edge of the area. It’s a soft strike, straight at Kelleher. But both sides all of a sudden look more energised!
81 mins: Finally a spark of life from Ireland. Kelleher is under pressure from the press but his first time pass on the half-volley is good. O’Dowda’s spin to beat his marker is sensational and away he goes. He feeds Szmodics with a lovely ball in behind but the final ball is over everyone’s heads despite Obafemi shedding his defender inside the box.
79 mins: Another Irish change. Jason Knight replaces Josh Cullen.
78 minutes: Scales gets his name taken. A sloppy first touch allows Kleinheisler to pick his pocket. In a desperate lunge to win it back, Scales cuts him down in ugly fashion. Definite card.
76 mins: Closest we’ve come to a chance for a while. The ball from a free-kick from Szoboszlai is sensational. Scales has to stretch to take it off the toe of a Hungarian runner to prevent what could have been a tap-in.
Is he wrong? This has been a turgid half of football.
73 mins: Smallbone is caught late by Lang on the back of his heel. You can hear his screams very clearly in a quiet stadium. Free-kick given, no card.
71 mins: At least substitutions give us something to talk about. Adam Idah has been quiet after his effort-laden first half. Michael Obafemi replaces him.
Let’s watch his goal as he goes off.
70 mins: All quiet on the western front. Neither side looks capable of firing a shot, literal or metaphorical.
61 mins: A double change for Ireland. Finn Azaz is off, Troy Parrott and his club, hat-trick-scoring form is on. Callum O’Dowda also enters the fray in place of Robbie Brady.
56 mins: SAVE! This time Sallai does find the target. He cuts in onto his left to take the ball away from Brady, aiming for the bottom corner. Kelleher reads it well, changing his positioning at the last minute to be able to get to that far corner and turn the ball behind.
ANOTHER SAVE! Off the following corner, Schafer fires a low, swerving effort on goal. That moved late and Kelleher does very well to firstly make the save, but secondly smother any potential rebound with Hungarian players swooping.
52 mins: Wow. Szmodics is a lucky man. Sallai has acres of space to shoot after the Blackburn man fresh airs with his attempted clearance. Fortunately for Szmodics, the shot is blocked inside the box.
51 mins: A quiet opening to the second half. Cullen and O’Brien both show deft touches on the edge of their own area to beat the Hungarian press. Idah can’t follow suit as his poor pass to Brady higher up the pitch costs Ireland a counter-attack.
46 mins: Right, then. With those three changes made across the two sides, the second half is underway.
Ireland make two changes at half-time. Jake O’Brien of Lyon is on for an Ireland debut, he replaces Matt Doherty. Liam Scales of Celtic is also on as Shane Duffy comes off.
Hungary, bizzarely, have changed their goalkeeper. Gulacsi is off, Dibusz is on for him.
The Hungary goal also featured some shambolic defending. Lang should not be all alone at the back post. Yes, second balls can happen inside the box given the contest for possession, but no one can be that free two yards from goal.
Let’s quickly recap the goals. It all started with Ireland’s long ball strategy coming off against the run of play. Smallbone’s run to the byline is clever, but he should be picked up. Idah’s movement to find space in the box is, again clever, but he should have been picked up. Good header, though.
Half-time: Ireland 1 Hungary 1
Strange aul half in the Aviva. Ireland have had nothing going forward apart from Idah. It worked once but, in an irony lost on few, after cashing in on poor defending of a ball into the box Ireland were guilty of the same, gifting Hungary an equaliser. It’s been a low quality game. Ireland at least have the excuse of match rustiness given the Championship season ended a month ago, but Hungary are supposed to be going to the Euros in 10 days’ time!
45+1 mins: CHANCE! Idah is comfortably Ireland’s biggest threat. He somehow gets his head on the end of a Brady free-kick where he had no right to. Swarmed by Hungary defenders, he can’t keep the effort on target.
GOAL HUNGARY
Ireland’s lead didn’t last long. They fail to deal with a free-kick into the box and Lang finds himself all alone at the back post. Akin to Idah’s goal, no one picked him up and he powers home past Kelleher from close range. The defending in the last five minutes on both sides has been shocking.
GOAL ADAM IDAH
36 mins: What do I know? Big man up top works! Smallbone finds space in behind, no one goes with him. He crosses from out wide and, once again, no one picks him up. He has a free header six yards out and he buries it. Brilliant cross, brilliant finish but unbelievably poor defending. Ireland lead against the run of play!
34 mins: Idah again makes some space in behind to chase a long ball, but the ‘keeper is out to beat him to it. Long balls to the big man up top to chase all night - that looks to be Ireland’s only source of inspiration going forward.
28 mins: SAVE! Hungary break after Ireland are again caught in midfield. They wanted a foul, but play goes on. Kerkez is teed up for a strike from just inside the box on the left hand side. He makes decent contact but it’s straight at Kelleher. A good save, but one you’d expect him to make.
24 mins: Ireland are not offering a lot here on the ball. Movement both on and off the ball is sluggins. A misplaced pass allows Schafer to break up to the edge of the box. He tumbles, gets back to his feet and then fires. It’s a venomous effort, but off target.
18 mins: That’s unlucky for Idah. He is so strong on the ball, shrugging off one defender before looking to run around Lang inside the box. The defender just gets his body across him, meaning Idah has no choice but to run into him as he goes after the ball. There is half a shout for a penalty but it’s quickly waved away. One of those where, the contact isn’t enough to warrant a penalty, but you wouldn’t be surprised if a referee gave a free-kick when it happens outside the box.
13 mins: Best chance of the game so far. Duffy is caught for pace by the ball over the top, allowing Varga to get in behind. He pulls it back to Nego on the edge of the box. He has acres of space to pick his spot but, leaning back, he launches the shot high and wide. Let off for Duffy and Ireland.
8 mins: A clever run from Idah takes him into space in behind as the ball comes over the top. For half a second, he looks to be in but Lang read it well to come across and deal with the danger.
5 mins: Decent hold-up play from Szmodics. He holds off one defender before spinning on the edge of the box, looking to shoot. The angle doesn’t open up for him, so he spreads it wide. Doherty’s cross comes to nothing.
2 mins: An early touch for Kelleher. Sallai makes space down the right and quickly crosses into the box. Varga is there to get a head on it but it’s a tame effort - easy save for the Liverpool ‘keeper.
1 min: We’re underway at the Aviva! Hungary start with possession as Sallai gets things going from the kick-off.
Before the game starts, there will be a moment’s applause for Joe Kinnear and Charlie Hurley who both died recently.
Here’s the Ireland team. With no Gavin Bazunu, Caoimhín Kelleher starts in goal. Shane Duffy also gets a rare start with Adam Idah, Sammie Szmodics and Finn Azaz - his first start - the other notable inclusions in the first XI.
Just for good measure, while we haven’t heard anything definitively from the FAI, John O’Shea did say that he hopes to hear about his job prospects after the second match of this window against Portugal on June 11th.
[ O’Shea hoping for clarification on Ireland manager role later this monthOpens in new window ]
Nowadays, in Dominik Szoboszlai, their manager Marco Rossi has a 23-year-old Liverpool midfielder to build his team around. The imminent Euros offers Szoboszlai the perfect stage to back up a fantastic record of 12 goals from 40 caps.
— Gavin Cummiskey
What about Hungary, what should we know about them? Soccer correspondent Gavin Cummiskey takes a look at what makes tonight’s opponents tick.
[ In-form Hungary a tough proposition for O’Shea’s Republic sideOpens in new window ]
“The man beside me is fit for the job as anyone else. I can’t speak highly enough of him as a man but also as a coach and now in how he manages the group.”
— Séamus Colemen
We mentioned some of the praise coming John O’Shea’s way from players, here’s an example. Séamus Coleman was very strong with his words, albeit they came while sat next to O’Shea at a press conference!
Hungary are Euros-bound. Ireland, infamously, are not. That failure led to the end of the Stephen Kenny era and seven months later, we still don’t know who’s next up in the hot seat. John O’Shea wants the gig, he’s made that abundantly clear, but he hasn’t been considered as a serious candidate. Yet.
After leading Ireland on an interim basis for a pair of games earlier this year, O’Shea will do so again now, starting tonight. Two decent results, or more likely performances, could be enough combined with the public praise of players to change the FAI’s minds on O’Shea? Who knows. All that is certain is that one of the longest-running sagas of Irish sport has no immediate end point in sight.
As for tonight, it will be interesting to see who O’Shea picks given the majority of his Premier League players are out. Evan Ferguson, Chiedozie Ogbene, Gavin Bazunu, Nathan Collins and Andrew Omobamidele are all unavailable. We’ll see what’s what when O’Shea’s XI is announced at around 6.45pm.
From one Ireland side to another, welcome to live coverage of the Ireland men’s team as they welcome Hungary to the Aviva Stadium in an international friendly. As the women’s side finishes up their clash with Sweden in Stockholm, we’ll be building up to the men’s action in Dublin which kicks off at 7.45pm.
