Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrimsson has stated that if Ireland's 5-0 loss to England becomes a future outlier, it will show that his Irish side has made good strides in their development under him.
Ireland ended their Nations League group with 2 wins and 4 losses, a mixed bag. Because of their standing, they will play a Nations League B/C relegation/promotion play-off against Bulgaria next March.
The Boys in Green need to overcome the Bulgarians over two legs to stay in Group B.
Ireland's display against England last Sunday was a mixed bag. The first half saw Ireland show resolution in the face of their much-fancied opponents. However, the second half saw 5 goals fly in.
Hallgrimsson didn't mince his words after the game when asked about the performance, saying there were no excuses for this type of capitulation.
Today, the Icelander offered a more measured take, stating that if the second half becomes a one-off for his side, it will show they are on the right track under him.
"Saying that after a 5-0 loss is always kind of strange, but if I look at the second half against England as an outlier, I think we have taken good steps," said Hallgrimsson after the draw to the Irish Times
Ireland will play the first game away from home on March 20 and then return home for the second leg on March 23. They will face a side that lost 5-0 to Northern Ireland at Windsor Park.
Hallgrimsson hasn’t taken stock of or noticed the 5-0 defeat to Northern Ireland and highlighted their other fixtures, which helped them finish second. Nevertheless, he is content with the draw, as they have avoided drawing Slovakia, the highest-ranked side.
"I think Bulgaria is an OK draw," added Hallgrimsson. "It’s not my favourite; it’s not the worst. Slovakia was the highest FIFA-ranked team, and everyone would like to avoid them. Yeah, it’s probably going to be an equal game like most of these set-ups.
"They were in a group with Northern Ireland, and... they lost in Belfast, but that is kind of an outlier in all the results. They had four clean sheets in that group, and somebody had told me Ireland had them in the group in 2020, and it was two draws.
"You would expect a low-scoring game when you look at the goals and statistics."
