Nobody will want to face this Ireland team in the play-offs

Liam Brady believes Ireland’s victory fully vindicates the FAI’s decision to agree a contract extension with Martin O’Neill.

In the run-up to Monday’s game, Chris Coleman had talked it up like it was going to be a heavyweight boxing match.

And so it was, but perhaps not exactly how he’d imagined it would be. Instead of the two sides going toe-to-toe from the first bell, this was a case of Ireland doing that rope-a-dope thing, soaking up lots of pressure, especially in the first 20 minutes, and then, when Wales had punched themselves out, taking their one big chance to land the knockout blow.