Hallgrimsson 'dead man walking' for maligned Ireland

Heimir Hallgrimsson is a "dead man walking" with the Republic of Ireland's World Cup hopes all but over, according to RTÉ Soccer analyst Alan Cawley.

The Boys in Green suffered a 2-1 defeat to Armenia on Tuesday evening in Yerevan, leaving them needing a minimum of one win over Portugal to keep hopes alive of securing a play-off place ahead of the tournament in 2026.

Hallgrimsson’s contract is due to expire at the end of the qualification campaign.

With a Euro 2028 campaign next on the agenda if Ireland do miss out on USA, Mexico and Canada, it would seem unlikely the FAI would keep faith with the Icelandic manager given his poor record so far.

Qualification for the Euros could be automatic as a host, although that is not guaranteed.

Nevertheless, the governing body may struggle to convince the public that Hallgrimsson deserves a contract extension after recent displays.

Conceding the first goal in nine of 10 competitive matches has been the most worrying trend for Ireland.

On occasions the side have battled back, such as last Saturday against Hungary, but ultimately Ireland have paid the price for their faults in defence.

Speaking to RTÉ Sport this afternoon, Cawley said: "Heimir would be under no illusions. He was asked about [his situation] last night in the interview.

"He'd be fully aware. It was more the manner of the defeat than the result [that will cost him].

"He can't stand over that. He's the manager. He's responsible for the approach, the changes in game.

"If you're giving yourself a mountain to climb falling behind in every game, it's near-on impossible to win. And that's what we're seeing. Ultimately he's going to face the axe because of this. The World Cup campaign is effectively over after two games.

"But overall I think the problems lie a lot deeper than just Heimer Halgrimson as well."

Cawley sees the issues within the Irish football as deep-rooted and difficult to change.

As the FAI prepare for redundancies amid a €40million debt, which has been reduced from €70m through a state-led bailout, academies continue to struggle for coaches and resources through a lack of funding.

Just six players from the Premier League featured in the squad for these World Cup qualifiers.

The former league winner with Shelbourne added: "If you were to broaden out the argument, Irish football is in a sad state of affairs.

"The FAI has been dysfunctional for years and years.

"This is a result of it. And people predicted this would happen. Maybe people on the outside didn't really kind of see it going as bad as what it is. But if you were to broaden it out away from last night and away from Heimir Hallgrimsson, Irish football is in a bad, bad place.

"Maybe there is some delusion out there to be honest with you. Judging by previous results and where we're at in recent times, we've no divine right or no entitlement to think we're going to beat anyone.

"Perhaps we were disrespectful towards Armenia but a lot of it would have to do with the world rankings and where they are in 105th compared to Ireland.

"We still set our barometer kind of high in terms of where we see ourselves but where we feel we should be as well. I knew it was going to be a difficult game.

"The result didn't even surprise me to be honest with you. It was more the manner of the defeat and the approach which did."

One of the many areas Ireland fell down in was being easy to play against, something which previous manager Stephen Kenny was also criticised for.

Cawley stressed that it has been the major failure of the Hallgrimsson era.

"Everybody felt there'd be a bit more of a pragmatic approach than we seen under Stephen Kenny," he said.

"But he's let himself down massively in that regard because you look at the chances that Armenia created last night, carving us open at will.

"I felt the approach was too open. You look at Hungary, conceding two goals after 15 minutes. It is very damning on Heimer.

"In terms of pragmatism on what we were being told we were to expect of him, he just hasn't lived up to those expectations at all.

"Last night was just the worst of all of what we've seen, which is a pretty low bar when you'll think of the results that we've had in recent times. But the manner of the defeat was the most damning thing."

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