Republic of Ireland welcomed Denmark to the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on October 13, 2018, in what was the second outing for both sides in the UEFA Nations League, League B – Group 4. They had both already faced Wales, but with contrastic fortunes as Denmark beat Ryan Giggs’ side at home by 2-0, while the Irish suffered a 4-1 defeat at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Team News
Martin O’Neill in the home dugout was without fullbacks Seamus Coleman and Stephen Ward which left him in a spot of bother when it comes to defensive flanks, while midfielder James McClean and striker Shane Long recovered in time from their ankle and wrist injuries, respectively.
The team was arranged in a 3-5-2 shape, with Darren Randolph in goal and the trio of captain Richard Keogh, Shane Duffy and Kevin Long forming the back line. Callum O’Dowda, Harry Arter and (surprisingly) Cyrus Christie held the middle with Matthew Doherty on the right and James McClean on the left flanking them. Upfront, Shane Long was the focal point of attack with Jeff Hendrick in support.
Age Hareide was without Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Christian Eriksen, while Rosenborg striker Nicklas Bendtner is out of the squad as he faces charges for an attack on a taxi driver in Copenhagen.
The Danes played in a flat 4-4-2 formation. Kasper Schmeichel was between the posts. Captain Simon Kjaer and Mathias Jorgensen were the centre-back duo, with Henrik Dalsgaard playing as the right back and Stryger Larsen as the left. Thomas Delaney and Lasse Schone were the central midfielders, with Martin Braithwaite wide on the right and Pione Sisto on the left. Kasper Dolberg and Yussuf Poulsen played together in attack.
The First Half
The game started rather fiery but balanced, as both teams entered it with lots of desire. The first moment of excitement happened in the fifth minute when Hendrick failed to realize Arter was down and the Danes had stopped playing. He nicked the ball off the staggered Delaney and charged towards Schmeichel, before inexplicably putting it wide of the target. The visiting players were understandably angry. Having recovered and continued playing, Arter picked up a booking for a needless late tackle just two minutes later.
Ireland had a nice opportunity in the 12th minute to put the ball in the box as Shane Long earned a free-kick wide on the right in a good position, but they couldn’t make it count. Three minutes later, Dalsgaard tried a long-range volley from 25 yards at the other end after a cross from the left had been cleared, but he couldn’t hit the target.
Denmark often kept the ball for longer spells in the opposition half and they looked calm, but their game could have used more incisive passes as the lack of Eriksen as their most creative player stuck out sometimes painfully. The Irish, on the other hand, played a lot more directly and looked more dangerous,
However, the Danes had a good chance through Delaney as the midfielder tried to pick up a rebound from a deflected shot on the edge of six yards, but all he managed to do is to catch Randolph on the shoulder with his boot. O’Dowda complained of an injury at the same time and had to receive treatment.
Denmark turned up the volume as the game entered its second quarter, still keeping the ball in the opposition half for spells at a time, but Dolberg and Poulsen were getting more involved by the minute. Ireland, however, defended resiliently with the back three becoming a back five when needed. Shane Long, a very useful player in those moments, fought well to scoop up clearances and either hold the ball up or earn fouls in Denmark’s half.
In the 38th minute, the striker earned a free-kick some forty yards out. Hendrick took it very well, aiming for Duffy on the edge of six yards, but the defender’s header failed to hit the target. It was a good chance and it gave the home side some momentum, but Denmark quickly regained composure.
The visitors had a glorious chance towards the end of the half as a cross fell extremely kindly for Jorgensen inside the six-yard box, but the centre-back was so surprised by it that he failed to react properly. As the one minute of stoppage time started flowing, Sisto tried his luck from range and beat Randolph, but the ball bounced off the post and out of play.
The Second Half
Denmark came out with much more pace put into the ball and moved it forward a lot faster. They established a nice amount of balance between long passes and keeping it on the ground, and the result was that they arrived much more quickly to the edge of the home team’s box. It significantly changed the complexion of the game as Ireland started struggling to keep up with the different approach.
But it was Shane Long to the rescue once again, as the Southampton striker earned another free-kick in Denmark’s half and got Delaney into referee Javier Rodriguez’s book in the 56th minute.
But the respite was brief. Three minutes later, the Danes almost took the lead through their captain. Schone swung in a corner and Kjaer’s header went past Randolph and towards the far corner, but Arter was there to clear it off the very line.
Denmark were slowly tightening the ring, and Christie was forced to earn a yellow card in the 64th minute by stopping the run of Delaney with a foul from behind. O’Neill then decided to freshen up his midfield by introducing Callum Robinson for Arter.
With Denmark having nothing to show for their effort despite clear domination, Ireland threatened seriously in the 72nd minute as Stevens’ cross from the left was laid off by Long and smacked on target from around 20 yards by Christie, prompting a great save from Schmeichel.
With eleven minutes remaining, Hareide made an interesting move. He sent on Chelsea centre-back Andreas Christensen instead of Kasper Dolberg in what clearly looked like a defensive substitution.
But what followed went some way in explaining the decision by the Denmark coach. Ireland turned up the pressure for a few minutes with several crosses into the box and Christensen’s presence there was valuable for his defence. Then, in his last move of the evening, O’Neill replaced the tired-looking Shane Long with the fresh legs of Aiden O’Brien.
In those minutes, Denmark livened up again and Poulsen and Braithwaite squandered a decent chance apiece with weak efforts from favorable positions. Delaney also had a go but from range, and it was an easy job for Randolph. Defending was the only way to go for the Irish as the game entered the last stage.
But it would be the home team who would go for all the points in the dying seconds of the two-minute stoppage time, with Duffy going down inside the opposition box after contact with Dalsgaard. The referee, however, booked the Brighton and Hove Albion defender for a dive and marked the end of the game a few seconds later.
The Afterthought
Even though Denmark seemingly played better football, dominating possession and passing the ball around, the final score is more than right, an objective reflection of everything seen. Without Eriksen, their creativity was practically non-existent, a point highlighted by the fact that their best chances came from set-pieces.
Ireland, on the other hand, obviously lack proper quality in their team to be able to cause concern for any serious opposition. Their players did well to stick to their individual tasks, they were tactically well prepared, and in that respect this was a very good result for them even at home against a Denmark team without their best player.
In fact, both teams will have their reasons for a positive view of this draw. The visitors top the group after two rounds, and Ireland, while still at the bottom, need to find comfort in the fact they managed to remain undefeated in a game where they were overall the inferior team.
Match Report
IRELAND: Randolph 6.5, Keogh 6, Duffy 6.5, K. Long 6, O’Dowda 6.5 (46′ Stevens), Arter 7 (65′ Robinson 7), Hendrick 7, Doherty 6.5, Christie 7, McClean 7, S. Long 7.5 (83′ O’Brien N/A).
DENMARK: Schmeichel 7.5, Kjaer 7, Jorgensen 7, Dalsgaard 6.5, Larsen 6, Delaney 7.5, Schone 6.5, Braithwaite 7, Sisto 7, Dolberg 6 (79′ Christensen N/A), Poulsen 7.
YELLOW CARDS: Arter 8′, Delaney 56′, McClean 90′, Duffy 90’+2.
VENUE: Aviva Stadium, Dublin.
REFEREE: Javier Rodriguez (Spain).
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