The simple reasons why Ireland finally got it so right against Scotland

STEPHEN KENNY afterwards described yesterday’s game with Scotland as the Irish team’s “most significant home victory in seven years”.

He is referring, of course, to the playoff win over Bosnia that secured Ireland’s place at Euro 2016.

And indeed, there has not been much since to rival Saturday’s scenes.

Since that memorable night in 2015, Ireland have only won four competitive home matches — Georgia (twice), Moldova and Gibraltar.

It had been precisely three years and one day since the Aviva last saw a competitive win, as a Mick McCarthy-managed team laboured to a 2-0 victory over the Gibraltarians.

It was also the first home competitive Irish win over a team ranked above them — they trail the 39th-place Scots by eight places — since that pivotal Bosnia victory.

So why has it suddenly all gone so right after the current international window began in such a drab fashion with tepid defeats to Armenia and Ukraine?

There are a number of factors but the biggest and most obvious one was the five astute changes in the starting XI that Kenny made prior to kick-off.

It’s previously been noted that six of Ireland’s starters in Yerevan had over 200 caps but just four goals between them at international level.

One of the players who came into the side on Saturday, Alan Browne, was employed in the somewhat unfamiliar role of right wing-back primarily to curb the threat posed by Liverpool star Andy Robertson. He performed his primary task relatively well, with the Scottish star having an off day. Yet the Preston man also scored the game’s all-important first goal, finding himself in the right place to prod home from close range after getting on the end of Shane Duffy’s header across the box.

That is Browne’s second goal in five matches for Ireland, just two of which he’s started, having also scored the equaliser after coming off the bench against Belgium. 

And of all the midfielders at Kenny’s disposal, Browne is arguably the most likely to come up with a goal — he managed 12 in one campaign for Preston as recently as the 2018-19 season.

Similarly, the introduction of Michael Obafemi breathed fresh life into the team. With 12 goals for Swansea, this season he has found the net more times at club level than any other player in the current Irish squad with the exception of Wigan’s Will Keane.

The Dublin-born player chipped in with a fantastic goal and a similarly impressive assist before a groin issue that may rule him out of Tuesday’s Ukraine clash saw him depart the field on 56 minutes.

With 10 goals for MK Dons, Parrott has only been marginally less prolific than Obafemi, so it was no surprise to see him convert his chance with aplomb as Ireland doubled their advantage in the 28th minute.

Another change from Wednesday was the introduction of James McClean for Enda Stevens. While the latter has never scored in 25 appearances at international level, the former is comfortably the top goalscorer in the current squad and the only individual to have reached double figures with 11.

So with those four changes from the outset: McClean, Parrott, Obafemi and Browne, Kenny significantly increased Ireland’s goal threat in response to the last two showings when they seldom looked convincing in their attempts at finding the net.

Jayson Molumby also came into the team and while he would not be regarded as a prolific player, his contribution also should not go unrecognised. The extra energy he brought to the Irish midfield was conspicuous and particularly evident in the tenacious manner he won the ball back in the build-up to Obafemi’s stunning third.

🚀 Michael Obafemi has thundered in a stunning third goal for Ireland - his first for the Boys in Green #RTESoccer #IRLSCO #COYBIG #NationsLeague

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📻Listen - https://t.co/DF4OgSwFy7 pic.twitter.com/sN0ieaQk7k— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) June 11, 2022

Yet Kenny deserves credit not just for the bold changes in personnel but also for the tweak in the system that preceded the victory.

Ireland began both the Armenia and Ukraine games with a 3-4-3 formation. The attack in Yerevan comprised of Chiedozie Ogbene, Callum Robinson and Parrott, with Jason Knight a direct replacement for the Tottenham starlet on Wednesday.

This system had served Ireland well towards the end of their World Cup qualifying campaign, with Ogbene and Robinson thriving in particular.

However, especially versus Ukraine, Ireland looked tired, stale and predictable. There was a sense that opposition sides had figured them out to a degree and so Kenny responded accordingly.

Yesterday’s starting XI was more of a 3-5-2 formation. The goalkeeper and defence stayed the same, but there was now a three-man central midfield, with Knight dropping deeper in contrast to previous matches where he had operated primarily as the left-sided attacker.

Now, the Derby man slotted in beside Molumby, with Josh Cullen slightly behind them in the deep-lying midfield role.

Ireland had essentially lost the midfield battle on Wednesday, with Ukraine controlling the contest aside from brief attacking flurries early and late in the game.

It was not the case on Saturday, however, with the Boys in Green sharper and more intelligent in their use of the ball than their opponents, despite having only 43% possession — a lower tally than they managed against either Armenia (68%) or Ukraine (45%).

And an interesting sidenote — many of Ireland’s better performances under Kenny have come when they have had low possession. Compared to yesterday, per BBC Sport’s figures, their possession stats were lower on just five occasions — 2-2 v Belgium (36%), 3-0 v Azerbaijan (36%), 1-1 v Serbia (42%), 2-1 v Portugal (28%) and 0-0 v Hungary (40%).

In addition to the increase in bodies there giving a more balanced look to the midfield, Browne and McClean added both discipline and greater attacking threat out wide, with the latter’s set-piece delivery leading to the opening goal and causing Steve Clarke’s side plenty of problems in general — another marked improvement from midweek when Cullen was invariably less effective on corner duties.

Meanwhile, despite their relative unfamiliarity with one another, Obafemi and Parrott demonstrated clear chemistry as they each set up their respective goals.

As the Swansea star told reporters afterwards: “Obviously people thought we played together before with the 21s, but we’ve both been injured at different times so we haven’t quite played with each other. Today was the first time. But I felt like, even before the game, we had an understanding of what we were going to do. It showed today with the assist for him and his assist for me.” 

Parrott notionally started the game as the number 10, with Obafemi in a more advanced attacking position, but these are two intelligent and versatile players.

Consequently, their roles were effectively reversed for the second goal, as the Championship star turned provider for the Tottenham youngster, producing a glorious chipped through pass for a fine, headed finish.

Troy Parrott and Michael Obafemi combined for Parrott to ghost in behind the Scottish defence and double Ireland's lead #RTESoccer #IRLSCO #COYBIG

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Given that it was this Irish team’s first competitive win against a relatively highly ranked team, and considering the immense pressure they were under coming into the fixture, it would not be too far-fetched to suggest Saturday was Kenny’s best moment so far as Ireland manager.

Yet particularly when you consider their inconsistency of late, it would be foolish to get too carried away and confidently declare that Ireland have suddenly turned a corner.

In reality, they are better than the performances versus Armenia and Ukraine suggest, but at the same time, yesterday was a far from perfect performance and the 3-0 scoreline flattered the hosts slightly.

Scotland were wasteful in their finishing and particularly in the first half, should have capitalised on a few nervy Irish moments at the back where they tried unsuccessfully to play the ball out from the back.

The result simply breeds some much-needed confidence into the squad and gives Kenny a template to build on ahead of more important fixtures to come.