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O’Neill upbeat despite defeat
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REPUBLIC of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill is confident his side can still qualify for the 2018 World Cup despite a damaging defeat at home to Serbia.
The 0-1 loss, courtesy of Aleksandar Kolarov’s second-half strike, pushed Ireland down to third place in Group D, with Wales’s 2-0 win in Moldova lifting it up to second.
Ireland faces Moldova in Dublin next month before concluding its campaign against Wales in Cardiff and even two wins would not guarantee it a place in the playoffs.
But O’Neill, who guided Ireland through the playoffs to the Euro 2016 finals, was in confident mood despite the first home defeat of his Ireland tenure.
“Absolutely not,” he said, when asked if the defeat spelled the end of Ireland’s chances. “We can win our last two games, we can still make it. No doubt, I’m very confident we can win both games.
“I said that to the players in the dressing room. Obviously, we’ve a lot of disappointed players after that performance but it’s not big words from me, it’s how I feel. I think we can win both games.”
Serbia boss Slavoljub Muslin, who now has one foot in Russia with games against Austria and Georgia to come, was delighted with his side’s battling performance.
Spain is also on the verge of qualifying for Russia after winning again on Tuesday.
It followed up Saturday’s 3-0 win over Italy by crushing Liechtenstein 8-0 to remain top of Group G, three points ahead of the Azzurri, who labored to a 1-0 win over Israel.
Spain has a much better goal difference than Italy so it can virtually secure first place — and a guaranteed spot for next year’s tournament — with a home win against Albania in Alicante on October 6.
Italy is all but assured of a spot in the playoffs as Ciro Immobile’s second-half goal means the Azzurri need just one point from their final two qualifying matches to secure second spot and a playoff berth.
It next plays Macedonia in Turin on October 6, three days before it visits Albania.
Albania’s hopes of sneaking into the playoffs are almost certainly over after it was held to a 1-1 draw in Macedonia.
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