MX23RW : Tuesday, March 19 10:30:49| >> :600:420011:420011:
[monks data]
Attendance: 51,700
Republic of Ireland national football team
Euro Champ Qualifying | Group Stage
Nov 18, 2019 at 7.45pm UK
 
Denmark national football team

1-1

Doherty (85')
FT(HT: 0-0)

Mick McCarthy refusing to give up on Euro 2020 qualification after Denmark draw

Mick McCarthy refusing to give up on Euro 2020 qualification after Denmark draw
© Reuters
Ireland will fight it out in the play-offs in March.

A defiant Mick McCarthy is refusing to give up on his Euro 2020 dream after seeing the Republic of Ireland come up just short in their showdown with Denmark.

Monday night’s 1-1 draw at the Aviva Stadium means it is the Danes who progress automatically along with Switzerland, leaving Ireland to battle their way through the play-offs in March.

McCarthy will not know who his team will face in the semi-finals until Tuesday – Slovakia or Wales seem the most likely opposition – but he is convinced they will give anyone a game if they play like they did in their final Group D fixture.

He said: “I have three months to prepare for that. We’ll see who we get and I’ll plan for it when we get it.

“If we play the way we are playing and play as well as that against other teams, we can beat them.”

McCarthy’s men turned in arguably their best performance of the campaign, but ultimately could not get across the finishing line as Denmark held on in a grandstand finish in Dublin.

Ireland were building a head of steam when they were caught with a 73rd-minute sucker punch as Martin Braithwaite timed his run to perfection to stab Henrik Dalsgaard’s cross past the helpless Darren Randolph.

McCarthy, who had sent on striker Callum Robinson for midfielder Conor Hourihane just minutes earlier, said: “We shouldn’t have conceded it.

“It’s always a kick in the nuts when you concede, even more so when you’ve made a positive substitution and you’re trying to get something out of the game, trying to win the game.”

However, Matt Doherty’s first senior international goal with five minutes remaining set up a late onslaught during which the home side just could not find the deftness of touch to make the pressure count.

McCarthy added: “I am immensely proud of the players the way they performed tonight, and even more so when we went 1-0 down.

“But it was a poor goal to give away. Doc says it was his man, it was on him, but he has gone and scored the equaliser, so I will forgive him slightly.

“I was giving out to him about the goal and I forgot to congratulate him for the goal he scored, so I will go back in there and do that.

“I’m very disappointed, but very proud of the lads. They were great.”

Republic of Ireland v Denmark – UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifying – Group D – Aviva Stadium
Age Hareide was disappointed with his side’s performance (Niall Carson/PA)

Denmark boss Age Hareide, who famously guided his side to a 5-1 World Cup play-off victory in Dublin two years ago, admitted they were fortunate to get away with a sub-standard performance on their latest visit.

He said: “We didn’t play well at all. I don’t know what happened. A solid defensive play saw us through the first half. We got in front in the second half and eased off in terms of pressure.

“At the end after they scored, they put a lot of pressure on us. Ireland played well and if they keep going like that, they will probably come through the Nations League play-offs and qualify.”

ID:379843: cacheID:379843:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:7817:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS

Group A

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Spain Spain870121
Q Scotland flag Scotland852117
3 Norway Norway832311
4 Georgia Georgia82248
5 Cyprus Cyprus80080

Group B

TeamPWDLPTS
Q France France871022
Q Netherlands Netherlands860218
3 Greece Greece841313
4 Ireland Rep. Ireland82066
5 Gibraltar flag Gibraltar80080

Group C

TeamPWDLPTS
Q England flag England862020
Q Italy Italy842214
3 Ukraine Ukraine842214
4 Macedonia N. Macedonia82248
5 Malta flag Malta80080

Group D

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Turkey Turkey852117
Q Croatia Croatia851216
3 Wales flag Wales833212
4 Armenia Armenia82248
5 Latvia Latvia81073

Group E

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Albania national flag Albania843115
Q Czech Republic Czech Republic843115
3 Poland Poland832311
4 Republic of Moldova Moldova824210
5 Faroe Islands Faroe Islands80262

Group F

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Belgium Belgium862020
Q Austria Austria861119
3 Sweden Sweden831410
4 Azerbaijan Azerbaijan82157
5 Estonia Estonia80171

Group G

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Hungary Hungary853018
Q Serbia Serbia842214
3 Montenegro Montenegro832311
4 Lithuania Lithuania81346
5 Bulgaria Bulgaria80444

Group H

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Denmark Denmark1071222
Q Slovenia Slovenia1071222
3 Finland Finland1060418
4 Kazakhstan Kazakhstan1060418
5 Northern Ireland flag N. Ireland103079
6 San Marino flag San Marino1000100

Group I

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Romania Romania1064022
Q Switzerland Switzerland1045117
3 Israel Israel1043315
4 Belarus Belarus1033412
5 Kosovo flag Kosovo1025311
6 Andorra flag Andorra100282

Group J

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Portugal Portugal10100030
Q Slovakia Slovakia1071222
3 Luxembourg flag Luxembourg1052317
4 Iceland Iceland1031610
5 Bosnia Bosnia H'vina103079
6 Liechtenstein flag Liechtenstein1000100

Subscribe to our newsletter


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!