‘Pain’ felt by Heimir Hallgrímsson after Prague loss shows how far Ireland have come

It was past midnight inside the Fortuna Arena when Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson addressed the football writers who have followed his squad since 2024, from Helsinki to Athens, London to Plovdiv. There was a brief stop in Luxembourg last summer before Yerevan, Lisbon, Budapest and now, finally, Prague.

“Pain,” said Hallgrímsson of the penalty shootout defeat to the Czech Republic on Thursday night. “I feel pain. I feel pride in the performance of the players, they gave it their all. I feel gratitude towards the supporters who turned up and supported us through the whole game and even after. I feel pride [in] being a part of this group, but all the players will feel pain now. Only pain, I would say.”

Pain is better than the numb emptiness that followed last September’s 2-1 defeat to Armenia at the Republican Stadium. Troy Parrott was ruled out of that game through injury, while Séamus Coleman and Jayson Molumby were overlooked for inclusion in the squad.

The second-half introductions of Killian Phillips and Kasey McAteer in Yerevan indicated the manager did not yet know his strongest matchday panel. Nathan Collins had the face of a shellshocked, inexperienced captain as he tried to convince viewers on RTÉ that Ireland could beat Portugal to reignite the qualifiers.

Hallgrímsson appeared even more downbeat before the long journey home from the Caucasus. “It’s difficult to see the light at this moment,” he admitted.

The return of Coleman infused the squad with leadership while Parrott covered the loss of the injured Evan Ferguson, who would end up needing ankle surgery.

The manager has earned a contract extension from the FAI and will lead Ireland’s push towards Euro 2028 qualification. After the defeat to Armenia, it seemed highly improbable that he would get a new contract. However, the Icelander’s ability to make significant changes after that setback ultimately landed him the extension.

Gone was the flat back four, with three centre-halves offering more security at the back. Coleman, Molumby, John Egan and Parrott returned in October for a deep-lying 1-0 defeat in Portugal before an underwhelming 1-0 win over the Armenians in Dublin.

Then November happened. Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off at the Aviva Stadium in a stunning 2-0 victory that teed up Parrott’s hat-trick against Hungary at the Puskás Aréna. In the space of a few days, two unexpected results changed how Irish people felt about their national team.

When the devastation of Prague and the memory of unconverted penalties by Finn Azaz and Alan Browne begin to fade, the foundations laid since October will drive Ireland towards a major tournament on home soil. Hosting rights for Euro 2028 are being shared between England, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

“We have shown our supporters that we can compete and punch above our weight and we will grow, I think, as we play more games in preparation for the Euros,” said Hallgrímsson.

“It is sad to talk about the Euros now, but that’s our job. We are on a journey and we are trying to improve. I think we have improved in a lot of metrics and we just want to continue doing that.”

What metrics have Ireland improved?

“Distance covered and sprints. It is metrics like XG and playing through opponents, metrics like opponents playing less through us plus punching above our weight and winning three games in a row.

“And to show character again: four times in the last year we have won games that we have been losing and you have to go 16 years back for the last time that happened. So, a lot of things are changing, mentally and on the pitch as well. Hopefully we continue growing.”

It looks increasingly likely that Coleman (37) and Robbie Brady (34) will not be part of the next growth spurt. Both players are peripheral figures for their club teams.

Coleman has already embraced an assistant coaching role at Everton under David Moyes, with Tuesday’s friendly against North Macedonia potentially his 79th and final cap.

“I [wasn’t] thinking of myself that quickly after the nation got so disappointed,” said Coleman. “That’s something that will come later down the line.”

A sliver of good news came on Friday morning when Sammie Szmodics thanked FAI medical staff on social media for how quickly they attended to him during extra time on Thursday. The forward was knocked unconscious in a collision with Czech defender Stepan Chaloupek.

“We need to go again, that’s our job as football players and coaches and leaders of this team,” Hallgrímsson added. “There is another game on Tuesday and we need to be ready for that one. We need to pick ourselves up. I know it is going to be painful when we wake up tomorrow but that is just our job.”

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