For a while last night the news from Sweden suggested the Germans would not even have to beat Ireland to be sure of Group C’s top spot and their place at next summer’s World Cup in Brazil. Noel King might have been tempted to make sure Joachim Löw knew because the locals were threatening to do to his side here what they did to Giovanni Trapattoni’s a year ago today in Dublin.
The Swedes came back, though and the Germans, as they do, made sure that it didn’t matter anyway. Goals from Sami Khedira, Andre Schürrle and Mesut Özil gave them a victory that wrapped up their place on a plane to Brazil while all but mathematically making sure that Ireland will finish fourth in the group.
The 3-0 scoreline scarcely did it all justice. The Germans could have had many more, the Irish one or two . . . King, predictably, preferring to concentrate on the latter.
“Look,” he said, “there was a deflection for the first goal and the second, well, phew, but we created chances ourselves and I’m delighted that that happened.
“But I’m disappointed that we didn’t get the goal. In the last minute we could have one when Ciaran Clark had a header saved but they went down the other end and got their third because we’d thrown bodies forward, we have to accept that.
“I compliment my own players for the job they’ve done out there tonight and I also compliment the Germans on being a wonderful outfit.”
Asked about a team selection that, notwithstanding the loss of five players from last month due to injury or suspension, caused surprise when it became clear what roles Kevin Doyle and Glenn Whelan would play, the 57-year-old insisted he was pleased with the way things worked out in both instances.
“Kevin Doyle’s played many times on the right side of midfield,” he said, passing over the fact he has rarely had to take on so much defensive responsibility and never, perhaps, found the role as onerous as he appeared to last night.
“Glenn Whelan was probably more of a surprise to people after this week but he gave us legs and I thought he did an excellent job in that role.”
Back home, he was told, the TV critics were less happy with his own performance and the ones he had coaxed from the team on the night but King looked genuinely shocked at Eamon Dunphy's claim that the Dubliner had made Giovanni Trapattoni look like Pep Guardiola.
Comedy programme
"That's the comedy programme that they have on after every match," he said after initially admitting he needed a moment to consider the remark. "so maybe that's a joke he's telling . . . I don't get it but maybe it was a joke.
“How many times have you watched that comedy programme . . . they’re so old, so antiquated; it’s a funny show, but real football people will see what happened out there tonight.
“These are good professional players. They acquitted themselves well in a green shirt, they never stopped defending and they never stopped trying to counterattack. If you didn’t see that then there’s something wrong with you. I’m happy, the players are happy and they’ll dust themselves down in time for Tuesday night.”
Robbie Keane should be fit again by then, King said, although Anthony Pilkington will return to England today with a hamstring injury to sort out.
David Forde was Ireland’s hero and Anthony Stokes, perhaps,the team’s villain with the former making a succession of good saves, even if he was beaten three times, while the Celtic striker failed to convert any one of three or four good chances.
“David Forde was exceptional, it was a man-of-the-match performance,” the manager acknowledged, “his saves were outstanding but I thought all of the players acquitted themselves well.
"I feel sorry for Anthony because he's given the ball away for the first goal but he's worked his socks off, been very creative and on another night he might have a hat-trick. But then that's what it's like being a striker, if you score you're a hero if you don't you're not."
Best games
Forde, at least, had something to be really proud of. "It's definitely one of my best games ever," he said. "It was one of those nights for me, but it's disappointing to lose, I'd rather not be man of the match.
“It’s always going to be a very difficult night, they had a big goal, a big target to achieve, to get to a world Cup. But I thought we put in a good performance and we created chances. If we scored it’s a different story just before half-time and we conceded quite early in the second half. You could look at some different things but I thought we did well.”
Low certainly saw things differently, insisting it had been: “one of the most deserved victories ever”. Just as he did a year ago, he certainly had cause to be pleased.
