45 mins: JR says: “You should have said Lichtsteiner is a well known acting threat, not attacking threat. Dude’s a troublemaker. So is Xhaka. So is Schar. Hopefully one of them get sent off.
“As an Ireland supporter I’m not in the best mood right now but Peter Oh’s Adrian jape made me chuckle.”
Peter claims he was not joking …
44 mins: Mick McCarthy is on the sideline shouting “Forward! Forward!” which should solve all of Ireland’s problems.
Lichtsteiner goes down once again. He just loves making the most of a challenge. Seferovic chests one down in the area but then smashes the ball 344888 yards over from close range.
42 mins: Whelan swings in a cross for Ireland from the left, which Duffy heads straight into the ‘keeper’s arms.
Geneva pitch update: it has cut up and looks rubbish.
40 mins: I have a lot of time for John O’Shea referring to everyone by their first name on commentary.
38 mins: Schar gets on the end of a headed clearance, sets himself up for a shot but curls the ball just wide from 25 yards out.
Karl Ruben Weseth asks: “This might be too niche, but: If you have any Hull fans in your audience tonight, maybe they can let me know exactly how ill-advised they think it’s been of Grant McCann to freeze out Henriksen this season. Only asking because he’s been immense so far for Norway this international break, especially for a player who has had no club minutes so far this fall (he means autumn).
“Also, to answer Glenn Kuly’s question about Kepa: he did give away an 90+ minute penalty in the last game, that might have had something to with him being left out for the Sweden game.”
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36 mins: McCarthy has changed things around and his side are now operating with a flat back four and Connolly playing on the left of midfield.
34 mins: Lichtsteiner goes down under aerially pressure from Browne. The Veteran defender rolls around on the floor like he’s been elbowed but the replay shows the midfielder barely touched him. Browne is still booked, though.
32 mins: Coleman and Xhaka have a bit of afters following a foul, resulting in them both being booked and the Irishman accusing the Arsenal midfielder of being lippy.
I was only born in 1987, so I will just blindly agree.
30 mins: Well-known attacking threat Lichtsteiner drives inside with the ball where there is lots of space, then whacks one with his left foot from 25 yards but drags it well wide.
28 mins: Peter Oh says: “Re: Glenn Kuly’s question about Spain’s goalkeeping. Yes Kepa, sure De Gea. But what does Adrian have to do to get a look in? Arguably the best Spanish keeper in the Premier League at the moment. Disclaimer: Asked by a Liverpool fan.”
Let’s not be silly, Pete.
26 mins: A rare foray forward for Sweden earns them a corner but it barely clears the first man and is whacked up field by the Spanish defence. They then get into the box once more but Berg is crowded out and the ball once again whacked away. Lustig does finally test De Gea with a low drive but the goalkeeper does well to hold.
24 mins: Embolo is looking bright for Switzerland – in order to stop the striker, Hendrick takes three attempts to tackle him but only succeeds in committing a foul. The hosts get a free-kick around 25 yards from goal but nothing comes of it.
22 mins: The pitch does not seem to have been much of a leveller for Ireland, as Switzerland have adapted to the conditions far better, while the visitors just seem to be knocking it long.
20 mins: Olsen dives to his right to palm away a downward header from Gerard Moreno, making his debut for Spain tonight.
Glenn Kuly ponders: “Any idea why De Gea, not Arrizabalaga, is in net for Spain tonight? Disclaimer: asked by a Chelsea fan.”
I think there is just a process of rotation with Spain at the moment, they’ve made a few changes to the team.
18 mins: The Spain defence are really boosting their passing stats tonight by spending most of the game knocking it back and forth to each other.
GOAL! Switzerland 1-0 Republic of Ireland (Seferovic, 16)
The ball is knocked down to Seferovic on the edge of the box, he gets it onto his left foot and arrows a shot into the corner beyond Randolph.
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15 mins: Darren Randolph’s once yellow kit is now a dark brown colour thanks to his diving around. He might need to change that at the break. Switzerland chuck a cross into the box but that is not an issue for Egan.
13 mins: In the opening 13 minutes, Sweden completed 10 passes to Spain’s 150 or so. Could be a tough night for the Swedes.
11 mins: In Sweden, a corner is swung in from the left, which Rodri forces towards goal from six yards but Olsen is equal to it and pushes the ball wide.
9 mins: Switzerland are just passing the ball around the back, which seems a dangerous policy when the pitch is mainly mud.
7 mins: Xhaka gets the ball 25 yards from goal, cuts onto his left foot and hits a low shot which dips at the last second, skidding off the surface and forces Randolph into a fine save as he tips it round the post.
5 mins: There’s been a few cheap fouls from Ireland early on but the referee has accepted he needs to be lenient in such conditions.
GOAL! Liechtenstein 0-1 Italy (Bernardeschi, 2)
The Italians have made 10 changes for their trip to Liechtenstein but it does not matter as they open the scoring bright and early through Bernardeschi.
2 mins: The pitch looks underwhelming in Geneva and we’ve already seen some long balls and Embolo getting caught in the mud in the corner. Lichtsteiner has earned a free-kick, too, for a forearm to the face from McClean.
It’s also hammering it down in Sweden for their game against Spain. They have also commissioned the world’s biggest flag to get the fans excited before the match. It’s bigger than my country estate (two bed flat)!
The players are out on the pitch in Switzerland and the pitch looks ropey, to say the least. This should be fun …
Peter Oh says: “30,000 kids in the stands in Bucharest? Not only is that going to do number on beer sales in the stadium, but the collective whine and unrest of “Can we go home now? This is booooring!” could overwhelm the stewards and security.”
Some of the kids might have fake IDs, to be fair.
McCarthy says the pitch may be a leveller tonight and feels the conditions might give the Irish an advantage. He praises Switzerland’s style of play and says he’s picked his team to match them. Looks like the team will line up in a 3-5-2 formation with Coleman and McClean as wing-backs.
In Bucharest, 30,000 children will attend Romania v Norway after the hosts were sanctioned for ban-worthy behaviour, meaning only minors and their companions can attend. I guess it’s sort of sweet.
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JR has been in touch, he asks: “Do you know where Connolly is lining up? Please don’t tell me on the right. I may not know what the hell I’m talking about. Nevertheless I don’t think he should play on the right.
“Also, though I appreciate some of James McClean’s attributes and past performances I think I’ve seen about enough of him. Also also, Why isn’t Doherty starting? I’d try to find a way to get him in there.
“Expecting defeat but COYBIG and all that anyway.”
I get the feeling Connolly will be on the right. McClean was pretty awful against Georgia it has to be said and I assume Doherty is out to provide a better balance to the side, but who knows?
There’s been heavy rain in Geneva and the pitch had to pass an inspection for the game to go ahead, which is slightly worrying. The downpour has stopped and standing water removed.
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I am informed that Mick McCarthy is a frequent visitor to the Cote Brasserie in Blackheath. If his side get a win tonight surely he is going to be in this week to treat himself to the Prestige Menu.
Finland have just beaten Armenia 3-0, including two almost identical dinks over the ‘keeper from Norwich City striker Teemu Pukki. The win takes Finland one step closer to qualification. They now sit second in the group on 15 points.
Needless to say, last night was a pretty depressing one for football. Hopefully those scenes will not be repeated. Here is the latest from the fallout, following Bulgaria v England game.
Starting lineups: Switzerland v Republic of Ireland
Switzerland: Sommer, Lichtsteiner, Elvedi, Akanji, Embolo, Seferovic, Xhaka, Rodriguez, Zakaria, Mehmedi, Schar.
Republic of Ireland: Randolph, Coleman, Duffy, Egan, Stevens, Whelan, Hendrick, Browne, McClean, Connolly, Collins
Starting lineups: Romania v Norway
Romania: Tărărușanu, Benzar, Rus, Nedelcearu, Bancu, Mitriță, Anton, Marin, Stanciu, Deac, Pușcaș
Norway: Jarstein, Alesaami, Ajer, Hovland, Elabdellaoui, Selnaes, Henriksen, Berge, Johansen, Odegaard, King
Starting lineups: Sweden v Spain
Sweden: Olsen, Lustig, Granqvist, Lindelöf, Bengtsson, Larsson, Olsson, Ekdal, Forsberg, Berg, Quaison.
Spain: De Gea, Carvajal, Albiol, Íñigo Martínez, Bernat, Ceballos, Thiago Alcántara, Rodri, Fabián Ruiz, Oyarzabal, Gerard Moreno
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Good evening!
The key thing this evening is that Switzerland v Republic of Ireland is somehow watchable, as the weekend’s visit to Georgia was utterly dreadful. Starting Aaron Connolly seems to be Mick McCarthy’s only hope as he brought some life to the general woefulness in Tbilisi. Not to mention the fact that a win or a draw for Big Mick’s men would maintain or extend their gap to Switzerland in third as they battle for a place at next summer’s Euros.
“He’s come into the squad, he’s had his cameo at the end, and then of course the question is, could I have played him more?” said McCarthy before the match. “Well, I could have started him and he might not have played very well from the start in a rough and tumble game. He might have scored from the start, all those scenarios.
“But had he started and not played well then that would have been, ‘well, he shouldn’t have had a debut’, usual stuff, which I know is coming.”
Elsewhere, the most intriguing fixture is Sweden against Spain. Admittedly, the Spanish are top of the group by five points, are yet to lose in qualification and only need a draw to confirm place for next summer’s tournament but a victory for the hosts could make things vaguely interesting.
If that doesn’t float your boat, then there’s always Faroe Islands v Malta.
Should be fun!
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