Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu won Man of the Match for his terrific performance, making ten saves throughout the game.

Serbia were ahead from the 20th minute but Irish pressure led to a late own-goal and almost flipped the script on the side who were top of Group A heading into this game.

Ireland looked much improved in comparison to their performance to the display they put up in the reverse fixture.

Ireland looked a lot better defensively as Serbia’s attacking lineup dominated possession for the majority of the game.

After the Serbians dominated the opening minutes, Ireland found their way into the game through Jeff Hendrick and Adam Idah.

Hendrick put in one of his best performances in an Ireland shirt on the night with some strong carries from midfield.

Adam Idah struck a header just wide from an offside position but it was clear that confidence had seeped into Stephen Kenny’s side.

However, a set-piece let them down 20 minutes into the game when Alan Browne failed to track his man and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic headed home in fine fashion.

Bazunu got a touch on the ball but could not do enough to stop it and the home side fell behind.

Ireland looked to responded but Serbia dominated possession until half-time with the home side hanging on.

Fiorentina star Dusan Vlahovic came close several minutes before the end of the half but was stopped by Ireland’s 19-year-old goalkeeper.

Serbia continued to search for the second when play restarted in an effort to give their lead some security.

Ireland struggled with the Serbian crosses and Bazunu pulled off some magnificent saves to deny the away side in the second half.

However, later in the half, Ireland started to attack more as the Serbians grew more desperate for a second.

Subsitute Callum Robinson and right wing-back Matt Doherty provided a strong threat to the Serbian backline, which was often disconnected from the rest of the side.

James McClean also looked to progress the ball further up the pitch on the left flank and the Derry man also had his moment in defence, clearing the danger after Serbian substitute winger Nemanja Radonjic found clean air.

The Irish pressure grew and grew and the national side got their reward when Robinson’s cross from the right wing caused a panic and the clearance whacked off Serbian centre-half Nikola Milenkovic and was redirected into the net.

The stadium erupted after helping the pressure to weigh down on the visitors and Ireland, after a minute of nerves and a near-wondergoal from Nemanja Gudelj, began to look for a second.

The side pushed hard and Omibamdele almost scored the winner from distance, forcing Serbian keeper Predrag Rajkovic to make an acrobatic save.

Several corners came and went but Ireland could not find a winner and the two sides settled for a draw.

The Republic of Ireland picked up their second point of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign and are now a point ahead of Azerbaijan.

Ireland overperformed by getting a draw against a side such as Serbia and it is the kind of result that stands to Stephen Kenny and the project he is building.

However, we will have to wait until October to see more of it.

Man of the Match: Gavin Bazunu (Republic of Ireland)

Republic of Ireland (3-5-2): Gavin Bazunu; Shane Duffy (C), John Egan, Andrew Omobamidele; Matt Doherty, James McClean, Josh Cullen (Jayson Mollumby 66), Jeff Hendrick (Conor Hourihane 78), Alan Browne (Callum Robinson 58); Jamie McGrath (Daryl Horgan 66), Adam Idah (James Collins 78)

Serbia (3-4-3): Predrag Rajkovic, Strahinja Pavlovic, Milos Veljkovic, Nikola Milenkovic; Nemanja Gudelj, Filip Kostic, Filip Djuricic (Nemanja Radonjic 70), Sergej Milinkovic–Savic, Dusan Tadic (C) (Nemanja Maksimovic 83); Dusan Vlahovic (Luka Jovic 70), Aleksandar Mitrovic.

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David McGoldrick announces his retirement from international football

The Football Association of Ireland would like to thank David for his fantastic service and wish him all the best for the future

https://t.co/ynNrU76RpS#COYBIG pic.twitter.com/0rDQ4OjN2I

— FAIreland (@FAIreland) November 4, 2020

Where will the goals come from?

Although McGoldrick will be missed, Ireland have continued to struggle to find the net, even with him in the team. Sean Maguire and Shane Long have been omitted from the squad, casting further doubt over their Ireland futures. Aaron Connolly has not started a game for his club Brighton since the last international break. Stephen Kenny hinted at Connolly’s prospects of filling the void left by McGoldrick by moving more centrally.

Adam Idah, like Connolly, has struggled to find game time at Norwich City this season. There was hope that the Cork man would push on as his team dropped down from the Premier League. But this hasn’t been the case. Callum Robinson enjoyed a bright start to the campaign for West Brom, scoring a brace against Chelsea. Since then he has only started one game, left standing in the shadows of new recruit Karlan Grant.

That leaves James Collins. The striker has four Ireland caps to his name, scoring on his debut against Bulgaria last year. Until now, Kenny has opted for youth when selecting his strikers, drafting in Idah and Troy Parrott whilst overlooking Collins in his last two squads.

Ireland 3-1 Bulgaria – What a goal by James Collins on his senior international debut. #rtesoccer #irlbul pic.twitter.com/NDc9JMD5YC

— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) September 10, 2019

Since the former Dundalk manager took over, his team have scored one goal in five games. In spite of the obvious scoring drought, Ireland have taken more shots and crafted bigger chances than their opponents in four out of Kenny’s first five games in charge. The game against Slovakia typifies these statistics. The chances have been there, but the goals haven’t.

How does James Collins compare to the rest?

This season, James Collins has scored five goals in all competitions, including a hat-trick against Norwich City in the Carabao Cup. Adam Idah and Aaron Connolly are both on one for the season, whilst Callum Robinson has scored three.

Focusing on last season alone, according to sofascore.com James Collins averaged a goal every 282 minutes, netting 14 times in 46 appearances. These numbers may not look impressive considering Collins is playing in the Championship. However it must be remembered that Luton Town had only been promoted last season, and finished in 19^th place. Not a bad return for a struggling side.

In contrast, Connolly managed three goals last season in the league, averaging one every 422 minutes. Idah didn’t feature as much for Norwich, starting only one game with his remaining eleven appearances coming from the bench. He failed to find the net. A hat-trick in the FA Cup against Preston North End was the highlight of his season. Robinson made the switch to West Brom at the beginning of the year, going on to score three goals for the Baggies (goal every 287 minutes).

Ignoring the fact that Collins is playing at a lower level, it is clear to see that his goal-scoring record is superior in comparison to his attacking counterparts in the current squad. Furthermore, Collins’ current form must also be taken into consideration, particularly with Connolly, Robinson and Idah all limited to substitute appearances in recent weeks.

Collins offers an alternative option for Stephen Kenny, who needs to start seeing his side convert chances into goals. Many would view McGoldrick’s retirement as the perfect opportunity for the younger players like Connolly and Idah to step up. Yet domestic football hasn’t been kind to them thus far. Ireland need goals and they need them now, so maybe it is time for Collins to steal the limelight.

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It’s not been an easy ride for Stephen Kenny so far. Still to manage a win, Kenny’s Ireland record as it stands includes three draws and one loss. Injuries, suspensions and other factors haven’t done any favours for the Ireland manager in what has been a substandard start to his managerial reign. He has shown signs of promise, with impressive performances – despite the results – against both Slovakia and Wales.

Kenny will be hoping he can turn those performances into results by ending his winless run with a win against Finland in Helsinki today. However, it will be no easy challenge as Kenny’s side suffered a 1-0 loss against Finland in what was his first game in charge. Finland also won their previous Nations League match against Bulgaria so their camp will be full of confidence going into today’s game.

Finland find themselves in 2^nd on six points while Ireland are 3^rd with just two points to their name. Promotion from league B to league A looks unlikely at this stage for the Republic of Ireland, but good results in their final three group games would mean not getting dragged into a relegation battle. Finland are still very much in the promotion picture. A win against the Finns could be the catalyst Ireland need to finish off the Nations League campaign early.

Tomorrow | #COYBIG | #FINIRL pic.twitter.com/UbXLNiS9v4

— FAIreland (@FAIreland) OCTOBER 13, 2020 

Both teams play a similar style of football, pressing high up the pitch and playing high tempo passing football so it should be an entertaining watch, for the neutral at least.

Here is all the information you need to know about today’s fixture:

Team News

Ireland

Ireland are going into this match with an entirely different squad than what was announced initially. Between injuries and illness, Ireland can count themselves unlucky to be in the position they currently find themselves in. Several key players are missing from the squad – including Seamus Coleman, David McGoldrick and John Egan. Kenny was however handed a significant boost earlier this week as Adam Idah and Aaron Connolly were both passed fit to play, having been previously unavailable due to coronavirus concerns.

Ireland may need to rely on some of their young talent, something which Kenny’s predecessors have often failed to do. The average age of the Ireland squad available for selection is 25.5 years. This is much younger than it has been in the past. Irish fans will be hoping youth trumps experience as just four players in the squad have upwards of twenty caps.

Suspensions: James McClean

Injuries: James McCarthy + another unnamed player (covid-19)

Predicted line-up:

Finland

Finland, unlike Ireland, should have a full squad available. There are no significant injuries or suspensions within the Finland camp, meaning they’ll be at full strength come this evening.

Daniel O’Shaughnessy will be hoping to start against his ancestral homeland for the second time, having previously played Ireland earlier in the Nations League campaign. His father hails from Galway given his Irish sounding name but he’s a proud Finn, having represented his country from u15 level onwards. Another player Ireland will have to keep an eye on is Teemu Pukki, who will likely start up top for Finland.

Suspensions: None

Injuries: None

Predicated line-up:

Finland vs. Ireland Prediction

Like the first encounter between the two nations, this will likely be a hard-fought affair. Finland will probably fancy their chances given the outcome of the previous game but Ireland will be no pushovers, they’ll be desperate to turn their fortunes around after a miserable campaign so far.

Finland are in better form than Ireland having won four of their last six competitive game – including a 1-0 victory over the aforementioned opponents – but Kenny appears to be finding his feet with performances improving game by game. There have been considerable improvements made since the first meeting between the two sides and Irish fans will be hoping for a much better performance than last time.

Our prediction for the game is:

Ireland 1 – 0 Finland

For those looking for further information:

Where is the match being played?

The match is being played in Finland’s home ground, the Helsinki Olympic stadium. This will be the Republic of Ireland’s third time visiting the stadium, having previously played there in 1949 and 2002.

When is the match being played?

It is being played on the 14^th of October. The match will kick off at 5 p.m. Irish standard time.

Is it being televised?

Sky Sports Main Event & Sky Sports Football will have coverage of the event. The match will not be free to air on Irish television. Virgin Media Two will have highlights of the match at 10 p.m. with full coverage of the match to follow at 11 p.m.

Viewers in the United States can also catch the game on ESPN+.

Where can the match be streamed?

Viewers can also stream the match through NOW TV’s Sky Sports Pass. The service can be purchased for one day for €11 or customers can purchase a month pass for €37.

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Following Sunday’s meeting with Wales, Stephen Kenny announced he would be calling up additional players for Wednesday’s fixture. “I do, yeah I do… we’ll be addressing that in the next couple of hours” said the Ireland manager after being asked if he would have to make additional call ups. The players that received the call have now been revealed as Dara O’Shea, Jason Knight, Adam Idah, Ryan Manning, Ronan Curtis.

Five players called up for the Finland match

Dara O’Shea | @WBA
Jason Knight | @dcfcofficial
Adam Idah | @NorwichCityFC
Ryan Manning | @QPR
Ronan Curtis | @Pompey

Idah rejoins squad after receiving clearance from the HSE

https://t.co/SeiauxiVvB#COYBIG pic.twitter.com/GVYLCKsLAy

— FAIreland (@FAIreland) OCTOBER 11, 2020

It is Jason Knight’s first call up to the senior squad. The Derby midfielder had previously been selected for the u21s. He will be hoping to get his first cap as well as Ryan Manning and Dara O’Shea, whose form last season will have caught the attention of Stephen Kenny.

Adam Idah had previously been included in the squad before being removed due to close contact with a member of staff who tested positive for covid-19. He has been recalled to the squad following clearance from the HSE. A much needed boost for Stephen Kenny.

The call ups come as a result of 10 players becoming unavailable for selection. The circumstances surrounding the absentees come as a consequence of injury and covid-19 precautions, following positive cases within the camp.

Despite a depleted match day squad, Kenny’s men came out of Dublin with a respectable draw against a Bale-less, but strong Welsh side. Kenny will be hoping he can notch up the first win of his managerial reign against Finland, something he failed to do in their previous encounter. The match takes place at 5 o’clock on Wednesday evening and will be played at the Bolt Arena in Helsinki. Unfortunately for viewers in Ireland, the match will not be shown free to air on Irish television. The match will however be shown live on Sky Sports.

This is the Ireland squad as it stands:

Goalkeepers: Darren Randolph (West Ham United), Caoimhin Kelleher (Liverpool), Mark Travers (Bournemouth).
Defenders: Matt Doherty (Tottenham Hotspur), Enda Stevens (Sheffield United), Shane Duffy (Celtic, on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion), Kevin Long (Burnley), Cyrus Christie (Nottingham Forest, on loan from Fulham), Dara O’Shea (West Bromwich Albion).
Midfielders: Conor Hourihane (Aston Villa), James McCarthy (Crystal Palace), Jeff Hendrick (Newcastle United), Jayson Molumby (Brighton & Hove Albion), Jack Byrne (Shamrock Rovers), Robbie Brady (Burnley), Josh Cullen (Anderlecht), Jason Knight (Derby County), Ryan Manning (Queens Park Rangers).
Forwards: James McClean (Stoke City), Daryl Horgan (Wycombe Wanderers), David McGoldrick (Sheffield United), Sean Maguire (Preston North End), Shane Long (Southampton), Adam Idah (Norwich City), Ronan Curtis (Portsmouth)

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