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Bulgaria 1 Republic of Ireland 1
With the increased emphasis on passing and possession evident throughout, Ireland may have offered its supporters some glimpses of a better future in Sofia, but for the moment all signs here were that Stephen Kenny’s revolution is a work in progress.
Shane Duffy saved the team and his new manager from defeat in this opening game of the new Nations League campaign with Ireland’s traditional goal, a header from the far post from a set piece. But the visitors were within a couple of minutes into injury time of the loss to the hosts they reasonably expected to beat.
Ireland, despite appearing generally rusty, dominated in terms of possession (61 to 39 percent) and passes (613 to 341) with a 90 percent completion rate, but some of the strays proved costly and All in all, it was a frustrating performance with not all of Kenny’s key picks paying off and the hosts managing more through real shots on goal.
“Overall, it was disappointing,” Duffy said afterward. “His chances came mainly from our sloppy play and I have to take the blame for his goal, I didn’t get there fast enough. But we did not lose the game and that is positive for me. We had a lot of possession, it was something we had worked on a lot over the last few days and even after going behind the goal we didn’t retreat forward or forward. “
Kenny looked more relieved. “It’s a game that we would have liked to win, that’s for sure,” said the coach afterwards. “We had good passageways and some good chances, but they also caught us at half-time a few times, so there are areas where we will have to improve.
“But we played a lot and we keep doing the right things. We never would have deserved to lose that game. We could have won it if we had taken advantage of our opportunities, but it could be a point won because of how late the goal came. “
The Dubliner had made it clear after changing the back room team and then appointing his team that he intended to do things his way, and his determination to trust his own instincts was evident in the selection of his starting lineup. .
Matt Doherty for Séamus Coleman was absolutely the right thing to do based on the club’s form, but some of the other big decisions were braver. Too often James McClean and Shane Long haven’t been good enough for Ireland, but the easier option would have been to stick with them. Instead, Kenny backed Aaron Connolly and Adam Idah to be better and the inclusion of the pair, along with Callum O’Dowda on the right side of the front three, characterized the manager’s intent.
However, Idah struggled, as it turned out, the 19-year-old was pushed too easily by more experienced defenders under crosses and caught more than once by the pace of things when looking to work the ball off his feet. .
His best moments were when Ireland had bodies around him and he handled touches that pushed others to propel towards goal, but, against a side that sometimes did not clear the ball with conviction, Georgi Georgiev really should have been worked a little more by the front three.
Bozhidar Kraev of Bulgaria scores past Ireland goalkeeper Darren Randolph during the UEFA Nations League match at the Vasil Levski National Stadium in Sofia. Photography: Kostadin Andonov / Inpho
Connolly, who had discovered for himself how difficult things can be at this level in Switzerland last year, was better at meeting the challenge, but spoiled his big moment early on when a mistake by Kristian Dimitrov allowed him to enter the arc. But the Brighton forward missed the goal from a narrow angle when O’Dowda and Idah yelled for him to square the ball.
As for the aesthetics of the team, there were clearly positive aspects. Bulgaria didn’t look very good, but it certainly seemed to have more of them here on the counter than in Dublin at the end of last year. Still, Ireland dominated piecemeal, holding the ball more effectively than we’ve gotten used to in recent seasons, and they did especially well at width, where they were allowed plenty of room to push.
However, the initial evidence of James McCarthy’s ability to serve as the player who will power Kenny’s Ireland with his pass was far from convincing. The 29-year-old, whose defensive display wasn’t great either, saw his first opportunity to open up the opposition fall when a poor attempt to send Connolly on his way was easily intercepted. Towards the end of the first half, when Ireland began to suffer some pressure, he was one of the culprits, as passes off defense were out of place.
Conor Hourihane was another, and it was his mistake that gave up possession before the Bulgarian goal. The Corkman tried to play the ball to the right, but the pass was too easy to read and then cut off, and there was no significant attempt on entry between that and John Egan’s last gasp to block Bozhidar Kraev’s shot after it. striker had stolen from Duffy.
In a couple of minutes, Ireland might as well have been level, with Connolly throwing a cross that seemed to invite a tap-in, but all the Irish players were within a yard or two of where they needed to be to turn the ball home.
There would be no other chance like this in the game despite the manager’s attempt to revise the offensive side of things by bringing in Robbie Brady, then Callum Robinson and then Shane Long in quick succession. The Sheffield United striker would make a couple of long-range shots but, in truth, none of the three seemed set to make much of an impact until Brady’s role in goal.
With time running out, the hosts were making the most of their advantage, moving the ball well against a side that no longer had legs to maintain their initial pressure, and still creating a few good opportunities, like when Bircent Karagaren was sent running. in the space between Egan and Stevens, but dragged his low shot across the face of Darren Randolph’s goal.
Ultimately, however, Brady’s energy and initiative earned Ireland a corner in the 93rd minute when he first blocked a punt and then forced Strahil Popov to cut off his cross. The script for what followed was as old as the hills, but as he watched from the sidelines, Kenny was clearly not complaining.
BULGARIA: Georgiev; Popov, Zanev, Dimitrov, Nedyalkov; Malinov, Kostadinov, Ivanov; Kraev, Delev, Nedelev. Subs: Karagaren for Delev (76 minutes), Galabov for Zanev (79 minutes), Tsvetkov for Nedelev (83 minutes).
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Randolph (West Ham); Doherty (Tottenham Hotspur), Duffy (Celtic), Egan (Sheffield United), Stevens (Sheffield United); Hendrick (Newcastle United), McCarthy (Crystal Palace), Hourihane (Aston Villa); O’Dowda (city of Bristol), Idah (city of Norwich), Connolly (Brighton and Hove Albion). Subs: Brady for McCarthy (70 minutes), Robinson (Sheffield United) for O’Dowda (74 minutes), Long (Southampton) for Idah (77 minutes).
Referee: M Schuettengruber (Austria).
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