THE most sobering aspect of Thursday night was that, really, this was how it felt to be insignificant. This was how it felt to be a Honduras 2010, a Costa Rica 2006 – in other words, one of the worst teams in a tournament.

Just two minutes into last night’s match, Andres Iniesta was given ample space and time to turn on the ball without any pressure and then pick a through pass for Xavi, who was just yards from the Irish box.