Heimir Hallgrimsson wants more progress – Ireland v Finland talking points

Heimir Hallgrimsson will complete the first phase of his Republic of Ireland mission with this week’s Nations League fixtures against Finland and England.

Last month’s victory over the Finns in Helsinki was the first of his fledgling reign at the third attempt, and a repeat at the Aviva Stadium on Thursday evening would cement Ireland’s League B status and send them into Sunday’s difficult trip to Wembley on a high.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at some of the talking points surrounding the game.

Hallgrimsson admitted after last month’s 2-0 defeat in Greece that Ireland had to stop handing gifts to their opponents after costly errors in both October games.

Nathan Collins’ underhit back-pass in Helsinki allowed Joel Pohjanpalo to open the scoring before goals from Liam Scales and Robbie Brady won it for the visitors, while keeper Caoimhin Kelleher’s miscued pass handed Petros Mantalos the opportunity to kill off any hope of a fightback in Athens three days later.

Similar generosity could prove deeply damaging when qualifiers come around.

Wolves defender Matt Doherty was a late call-up to the squad after being left out altogether for the last camp as Hallgrimsson looked at alternatives.

He admitted his disappointment at seeing central defender Andrew Omobamidele line up in his position at right-back against Greece in September while he sat on the bench, and one of the Republic’s most experienced – and at his best, accomplished – players clearly had something to prove to the Icelander.

A lack of goals during the latter stages of Stephen Kenny’s reign as Ireland boss contributed significantly to his exit, and it is a failing which has proved difficult to shake off.

Hallgrimsson’s side has managed just two in 360 minutes of football, both of them in Finland and both scored by defenders, Scales and Brady.

That is simply unsustainable if they are to stand a chance of qualifying for major tournaments again.

Hallgrimsson has explained his decision to leave some of his more experienced players out of recent squads – midfielder Alan Browne is another to have missed out – by citing the need to test new players before the serious business of World Cup qualification gets under way in March.

These two games represent a final opportunity to do that as he attempts to nail down the team he believes can take Ireland to Canada, Mexico and the United States during the summer of 2026, although he insists places remain up for grabs.

Finland boss Markku Kanerva described the meeting between the sides at the Olympic Stadium as a relegation decider.

The fact that Ireland emerged with the victory means the pointless Finns must win in both Dublin ahead of Sunday’s home fixture against the Greeks if they are to stand any chance of avoiding League B2’s wooden spoon.

However, Kanerva is without three of his younger players, Topi Keskinen, Leo Walta and Tomas Galvez, who have joined the Under-21s for their Euro 2025 play-off double-header against Norway.