By Damian Spellman, PA, Athens
Heimir Hallgrimsson wants opposition teams to “hate” playing against the Republic of Ireland as he builds towards his dream of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup finals.
The Icelander presided over his first win as Ireland’s head coach in Thursday night’s Nations League B2 encounter with Finland in Helsinki in his third game at the helm, and will hope to add to that when he sends his troops into battle with Greece in Athens on Sunday evening.
However, his longer-term aim is to restore the country's reputation as a team which makes life intensely difficult for opponents.
Asked if he had made them more difficult to analyse and less predictable during his short time at the helm to date, he said: “I hope so but I really don’t care if we are easy to analyse, if we are difficult to play against.
“I said that about Finland. Finland is a pretty easy team to analyse. They are consistent in what they are doing, they are just good at it and that is why they are difficult to play against.
“I want us to be, I would like us to be a team like that, that people hate to play against.”
Hallgrimsson’s players will have to contend with an emotional atmosphere at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium in Greece’s first game on home soil since the death of defender George Baldock.
We’re incredibly saddened by the news of George Baldock’s passing this evening
George played against Ireland in the UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying campaign last year - and played with a number of Irish players at club level in his career
Our thoughts are with his family and… pic.twitter.com/iwzszgZO4t
— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) October 9, 2024
Thursday’s win over England at Wembley proved a fitting tribute to the 31-year-old, who had a loan spell with Icelandic club IBV, which is based in the Ireland boss’ home town of Vestmannaeyjar, earlier in his career.
Hallgrimsson said: “I think it will increase their [Greece’s] togetherness. It was huge anyway. They are a really good team, hard to break down and hard to beat, as you would have seen in England.
“Moments like this just bring not only them, people together and make you realise life is more than football.
“I am a little bit connected to this because he played for my home-town club back in Iceland when he was 18. He played a season there. We, of course, give condolences to his family and everyone around.
A comeback win for @IrelandFootball 💚😁#NationsLeague pic.twitter.com/CXvJPEPf1s
— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) October 10, 2024
“I think they will be the same team, maybe more emotions. If that’s good or bad we will see tomorrow.”
Ireland’s win in Helsinki was their first in a competitive fixture against a side other than Gibraltar since September 2022 with their two Euro 2024 qualifier wins over the minnows sandwiched between eight successive defeats, three at the hands of the Greeks, who won 2-0 in Dublin last month.
Defender Nathan Collins has admitted the players had become “sick of losing”, and midfielder Josh Cullen acknowledged how difficult that run had been.
Cullen said: “No one likes losing games, everyone wants to be a winner and we’ve got a squad full – staff included – of people who want to win games. That goes without saying.
“But the way you win games is in details and a lot of smaller parts that you have to make sure you get right to earn the right to win games.
“We did that on Thursday. We know we have to prepare right and be ready to go. Coming off the back of a win, it’s always a bit easier to reboot the energy.”
