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Ireland failed to score, once again, as Stephen Kenny’s side drew goalless with Bulgaria in tonight’s UEFA Nations League match at Aviva Stadium.
Robbie Brady’s shot in the 68th minute slammed off the crossbar, and that was the closest both sides came to hitting the back of the net at this standoff in an empty arena off Lansdowne Road.
Little consolation for Ireland, who avoided relegation thanks to scoring a point, however, it is seven games without a goal for Kenny’s team, who still have not won a game since taking over as coach of the national team.
There were two highly changed teams from the first game in Sofia, which ended in a 1-1 draw in what was Kenny’s first game in command, and it was the visitors who came into action in the first minute when left-back Cicinho broke. in the box before cutting it back to the arriving Bozhidar Kraev.
The great center forward looked to hit him the first time, however he scraped his shot a bit when Duffy closed it, and Ireland finally managed to clear the fumble, with Ronan Curtis backing away from the right flank.
And it was Bulgaria who set the pace throughout the opening exchanges, playing a clean ball down the middle, with Kraev deftly falling into space with Kristiyan Malinov, whose game was no different than Ireland’s Jack Byrne sitting deep, pulling the threads.
It took Ireland 17 minutes to have a scoring opportunity when Curtis burst into the area from the right wing, cutting inside two Bulgarian defenders.
The Portsmouth forward smashed the ball in the face of the oncoming Collins, however a deflection carried the ball past his outstretched foot and sent it away for a corner.
But chances were limited as the half progressed, with the only real drama coming from two yellow cards for Kevin Long and rookie Ryan Manning, the first for a lost arm in an aerial challenge and the other for a reckless tackle.
In the 27th minute, Ireland gave Bulgaria a great opportunity thanks to a pass from a Caballero lost in midfield.
Dimitar Iliev intercepted the ball that hadn’t been hit and ran to the edge of the box before attempting to get the ball past Darren Randolph. The Ireland goalkeeper got it right and crouched down to make the save.
Ireland began to look a bit more animated, and lunged forward with intent as Knight, Curtis, and Dara O’Shea made inroads, helping the game continue. And while a couple of good deliveries were sent to the checkout, nothing could be done on the target.
But still Bulgaria kept going, playing freely, looking dangerous with every foray forward, and Kristian Dimitrov made a good header on goal from a corner but simply sank over the crossbar.
Brady hit a free kick in the 37th minute and nearly caught goalkeeper Martin Lukov as he evaded everyone, and the goalkeeper eventually parried it.
Horgan and Curtis eventually switched flanks and, for the first time, the Wycombe Wanderers winger made an impact, twisting and turning at the baseline before lifting the ball toward the back post.
Collins connected; however, Curtis was perhaps better placed by being late, but the ball couldn’t be worked on in goal, and that was the closest Ireland got, with goalless play at halftime.
Ireland came out for the second half with real intent and created three chances within the first ten minutes, and Collins, twice, missed the target after good deliveries from O’Shea – the second chance simply strayed from the near post as The striker did well with the ball behind the body upon arrival.
Curtis had the best chance to score, as a great run by Knight put him on the edge of the area, with room to shoot. The former Derry City man slammed him into goal, but the ball flew without testing the goalkeeper.
Yet despite all of Ireland’s attacking play, Bulgaria still looked dangerous and Kraev’s well-struck volley in the 60th minute reminded Ireland that they had to maintain their composure and avoid leaving holes in defense.
In the 66th minute, Bulgaria should have taken the lead.
A corner fell dangerously into the box and right at Dimitrov’s feet, six yards away. The large central half were looking to get the ball home, but a timely deflection to guide it to safety.
Two minutes later, Brady danced into space, coming in on the right flank and on his favorite left foot.
If there had been a crowd inside the stadium, the old South Terrace would have yelled “hit it” in unison.
Brady duly obeyed and ripped it perfectly off his instep, but he saw the ball crash against the bar and away from the goal. Six and a half games without a goal would have been the perfect way to break that particular unwanted record.
Josh Cullen and Jack Byrne replaced Horgan and Brady as Ireland went in search of a winner and an unusual walk down the court for Conor Hourihane led to an exceptional delivery from the left, needing only one touch to get the ball home.
Knight ran toward the six-yard box, but was inches away from guiding the ball home.
The manager then rolled the dice, throwing Troy Parrott and Sean Maguire on the attack as he chased his first win, but knowing that a Bulgarian goal would relegate his B League team.
Parrott was immediately involved, leading a breakout from the right side of the defense, leading Byrne, Maguire and Hourihane on the attack. However, the best they could conjure was a corner, which failed to create anything in goal.
Five minutes of stoppage time was added but Ireland couldn’t break through, with Maguire’s chance at the back post the closest they came to getting that elusive win for the coach, who must now wait through the winter and 2021 campaign to record your first victory. .
Republic of Ireland: Darren Randolph; Ryan Manning (Cyrus Christie 85), Kevin Long, Shane Duffy, Dara O’Shea; Conor Hourihane, Jason Knight, Robbie Brady (Jack Byrne 78); Ronan Curtis (Troy Parrott 85), Daryl Horgan (Josh Cullen 67), James Collins (Sean Maguire 85).
Bulgaria: Martin Lukov (GK); Strahil Popov (captain), Georgi Angelov, Kristian Dimitrov, Cicinho (Aleksandar Vasilev 61); Kristiyan Malinov, Aleksandar Tsvetkov, Spas Delev (Svetoslav Kovachev 61), Galin Ivanov (Birsent Karagaren 61), Dimitar Iliev (Denislav Aleksandrov 81); Bozhidar Kraev
Referee: Lawrence Visser (BEL)
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