Kenny takes full responsibility for Greece loss in June

Ireland suffered a 2-1 defeat to Greece in the first of their June Euro doubleheader matches. This loss in Athens has severely jeopardised Ireland's chances of qualifying for the Euro finals in 2024, leaving them hanging by a thread.

Speculation about Stephen Kenny's long-term future as Ireland's manager has grown increasingly negative.

With Ireland set to face France and the Netherlands this month, the pressure on Kenny is likely to intensify.

If Ireland fails to secure any points in their next two games, not only will their Euro 2024 chances be dashed, but Kenny's position as manager could also become untenable.

During the squad selection announcement press conference on Thursday, Kenny was questioned about the result against Greece this summer. Kenny admitted that his time with Ireland hadn't been perfect, but the loss to Greece had been a particularly sour mark on his record.

"To be honest with you, if you look at our last seven matches, have they all been perfect?" Kenny said firstly "No. Matches against Scotland, Ukraine, Scotland away, Armenia at home, and these three games in the qualifying campaign—all of them, I believe, reflected the style of play we aimed for. Were they perfect? No. But I felt that these performances largely aligned with our desired style."

"But Greece stands out," Kenny continued. "I'm not pleased with how we played against Greece at all. I was disappointed. When I looked at it, I didn't see myself as an effective coach for the team. As the manager, I take responsibility for that. Nevertheless, even though we didn't perform well, we could have still managed to draw the game."

Stephen Kenny accepted responsibility for Ireland’s poor performance in Greece, admitting that back to back losses leave his side with a ‘mountain to climb’ if they are to reach Euro 2024. https://t.co/0B5RGcIiGd

— Independent Sport (@IndoSport) June 16, 2023

Despite losing 2-1 in Athens, Kenny still believes that his Irish side could have achieved a positive result against Greece last June. What disappointed him the most was the manner in which they lost.

"Do you know what I mean? We could have easily secured a draw despite not playing well. The goals we conceded, including another handball for a penalty and the second goal, were disappointing," he added.

Expanding on the game plan in Athens, Kenny admitted that they had aimed to target the Greek fullbacks. However, this plan didn't materialise due to a lack of synchronisation between Ireland's defenders, midfielders, and forwards.

"We wanted to exploit the fact that their fullbacks frequently advanced and capitalize on that. We played a 3-5-2 formation, intending to exploit the spaces they left with our front two, but it didn't work out."

"We were too eager to exploit it too early. The passing among the players, including defenders, midfielders, and forwards, wasn't in sync. Their runs didn't align with the passing."

"Their defenders, particularly the two center-backs, defended well and read the situations, and we became somewhat predictable. That wasn't how we played in other matches."

"So, I was disappointed with that. However, we've seen it over the years that teams sometimes don't perform well away from home, but if you defend well and avoid conceding, you can still get a result."