Luxembourg 0 Ireland 0
Progress report. Stephen Kenny predicted that the fast-tracking of the Republic of Ireland under-21s from 2019 would lead to an established team of 20-somethings with 30-plus caps come the 2026 World Cup.
In November 2021, Ireland appeared to be ahead of schedule after a 3-0 win at Stade de Luxembourg to conclude their dismal Qatar 2022 qualification campaign on a high.
That result stretched their unbeaten run under Kenny to six matches since the disastrous 1-0 loss to Luxembourg the previous March.
Gerson Rodrigues’s winner at an empty Aviva Stadium was the start of an alarming concession of long-range goals on Kenny’s watch.
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Only two players in the current squad, Adam Idah and Matt Doherty, started in Luxembourg four years ago.
Caoimhín Kelleher and Nathan Collins were unused subs. Now, in 2025, the Brentford duo are the leaders.
Troy Parrott and Jason Knight both came off the bench in 2021. It was Knight’s ninth cap. The 24-year-old made his 38th appearance last night, while Parrott and Idah have compiled 60 caps and 10 goals between them since the last trip to the Grand Duchy.
There is still plenty of room for Ireland to improve against Hungary in the opening World Cup qualifier on September 6th, mainly by reintegrating Josh Cullen, Finn Azaz, Sammie Szmodics and Chiedozie Ogbene into the team.
Cullen and Azaz were rested for this international window while Szmodics and Ogbene are inching back from surgeries.
The problem with being rested or injured is it has invited Knight, Will Smallbone, Kasey McAteer and the rangy Killian Phillips to play their way into contention.
McAteer has earned his place wide on the right, unless Ogbene or Festy Ebosele can hit form for their clubs in August. Daniel Sinani could not handle the Leicester City winger’s pace, swallowing a yellow card from referee Stefan Ebner.
The benefit of this low-key summer camp is Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson has unearthed alternative options.
Jake O’Brien or Matt Doherty at right back? Power or panache? Take your pick.
More importantly, everyone clearly understands the Icelander’s fluid system. The 4-4-2 defensive shape springs into 3-2-3-1 as soon as Ireland win the ball back.
Hallgrímsson is not afraid to tinker with his personnel. On 30 minutes, he instructed Will Smallbone to drop into midfield and release Phillips to the inside left slot, which encouraged Ryan Manning to overlap down the wing.
Manning started warming up in the 18th minute after Robbie Brady’s calf tightened. Brady was gone three minutes later.
Opportunity knocked. Manning built on his performance in last Friday’s 1-1 draw with Senegal. At 28, the versatile Southampton player has made more progress than anyone on Hallgrímsson’s watch.
Max O’Leary, another 28-year-old who has bided his time, was given his debut ahead of Caoimhín Kelleher and Tottenham Hotspur’s young goalkeeper Josh Keeley.
“I am really pleased for Max,” said Hallgrímsson before kick-off. “He has travelled with the team since 2019, that was his first time with us, always supporting, always positive, always keeping up the standard for all this time without having a cap – he is getting his chance to show himself and shine for our fans.”
O’Leary picked off a dangerous cross from Tomas Moreira in the early going and when Sinai unleashed the first shot from distance, the Bristol City ‘keeper pushed the ball for a corner.
The expected red card protest happened in the 18th minute after several banners were unfurled: “Rout kaart eir gewalt geint fraen” (Red card for violence against women), “fussball ass politesch” (football is political) and “brissons le silence” (let’s break the silence) – the latter being the name of a campaign to raise awareness about violence against women in Luxembourg.
Unlike Friday’s 1-0 defeat to Slovenia at Stade de Luxembourg, the stewards did not remove the banners or the people who brought them.
The aim was to bring attention to the Luxembourg football federation’s determination to continue selecting Rodrigues, after the country’s record goal scorer lost an appeal in April of an 18-month suspended sentence for three violent offences, including the assault of his former girlfriend, the 2020 Miss Luxembourg, Emilie Boland.
Rodrigues was roundly booed by the 365 Irish fans behind the goal. At least another 100 travelling supporters were seated among the home crowd. In total, there were 6,312 inside this postmodern stadium on the edge of town.
The loudest cheer of the first half came when Rodrigues spun and shot wide of O’Leary’s far post. Soon after, the protesters and Irish visitors produced large red cards. This lasted about two minutes before everyone’s focus returned to the game.
Ireland looked comfortable in possession, but they lacked urgency until a Nathan Collins header hit the post before the break.
Parrott put the ball in Tiago Pereira’s net on 66 minutes, but the linesman was quick to flag for offside.
That seemed to spark something in Ireland as Evan Ferguson and McAteer went unrewarded for lung-busting runs into the Luxembourg box.
The urgency came from the alternative options – Festy Ebosele and Idah energised the Irish attack in the final minutes of a very long season, although the gift of a goal to celebrate Hallgrímsson’s 58th birthday never happened.
It was not for a lack of effort as Jack Taylor’s piledriver belted the crossbar with three minutes to play.
Luxembourg: Pereira; Dzogovic, Jans (Thill 62), Korac, Carlson (Gerson 89), Bohnert (Pinto 62); Moreira, Barreiro, Sinani; Dardari (Curci 76), Rodrigues (Veiga 82).
Ireland: O’Leary; O’Brien, Collins, O’Shea, Brady (Manning 21); McAteer (Doherty 76), Phillips (Ebosele 57), Knight (Patrick 90), Smallbone (Taylor 67); Ferguson (Idah 76); Parrott.
Referee: Stefan Ebner (Austria).
