We can do this…
Ireland’s qualifying campaign has been a mixed bag of disappointment, frustration, joy and elation so far.
From cold nights in Glasgow, to perfect performances in Gelsenkirchen.
And now our journey brings us back to the Aviva, where we play a Poland team that has been surpassing all expectations.
Let’s bring them back down to earth, shall we?
But before that, we may as well catch-up on what’s gone on in the qualifying campaign for both sides so far.
Matchday 1
Georgia 1 – 2 Ireland
Ireland’s opening group game looked as though it was petering out to a dull and disappointing draw.
Then Everton’s Aiden McGeady popped-up to prove he still has the occasional piece of magic in his repertoire.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2P0-l-4_LCQ
Gibraltar 0 – 7 Poland
Poland probably could have fielded their u-19 side and still have got a positive result here. Robert Lewandowski scored four goals and barely broke a sweat.
Well and truly an easy night for Poland.
Matchday 2
Ireland 7 – o Gibraltar
Were Ireland great or were Gibraltar poor? See above for the answer…
For a 7-0 victory, this game was largely forgettable.
The one stand out moment for us was when the Gibraltar goalkeeper, Jordan Perez, was substituted to a standing ovation after conceding seven goals.
Poland 2-0 Germany
Without a doubt, the result of the group so far. Not many gave Poland a chance against the World Champions, but Arkadiusz Milik and Sebastian Mila hadn’t read the script.
Matchday 3
Germany 1-1 Ireland
The tagline for this game should be ‘John O’Shea, the legend of Gelsenkirchen’. All looked lost and it really did seem like Ireland were on their way to another glorious defeat.
Then this happened.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmbtnQ6MNj0
Poland 2-2 Scotland
Gordan Strachan’s side looked to be on their way to an impressive win in the Polish capital, then Arkadiusz Milik popped up and made sure the points were shared.
This draw left Poland and Ireland sitting joint first in the group table.
Matchday 4
Scotland 1-0 Ireland
A momentum-crushing performance saw Ireland suffer their first defeat of the campaign.
Collectively, the team was poor. This was epitomised by their slack defending from a corner which led to Shaun Maloney’s 75th minute goal.
Georgia 0 – 4 Poland
A far more assured performance than Ireland showed in this fixture left the Poles sitting on top spot.
Goals from Arkadiusz Milik, Kamil Glik, Grzegorz Krychowiak and Sebastian Mila helped the away side to their third win of the campaign.
So there you have it, four matches in and Ireland sit in fourth position level on points with Scotland and Germany, while Poland are three points ahead in first.
Let’s hope we can close the gap when they visit on March 29.
COYBIG.
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