Hallgrimsson slowly getting magnitude of Ireland job 

NEW MAN: Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson with participants during a visit to a FAI football camp at Verona FC in Blanchardstown, Dublin. Picture: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

If he underestimated the Ireland manager’s position in sporting lore, then Heimir Hallgrimsson’s first five days in the country convinced him of where he ranks.

The Icelander's first visit to a GAA ground will be a football match at Pairc Uí Chaoímh on Tuesday but between the All-Ireland semis over last weekend and Ireland’s rugby victory over the World champions on Sunday he appreciates the sporting landscape.

And that’s before he witnesses the scramble to be among the 80,000 at Croke Park on this Sunday’s hurling final.

Still, football is the most participative sport inside the country.

The demand for the national team to return to the tournaments like the Euros just finished – or at least compete for qualification – is a responsibility he’s prepared to shoulder.

First up, on September 7, is England in the Uefa Nations League opener at Lansdowne Road. His contract signed last week also covers next year’s arduous task of being one of the 14 European nations to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

“I didn’t watch all of it but I saw the people at my hotel glued to the TV,” he said about the GAA and rugby weekend being observed at the Castleknock Hotel, the temporary digs for himself and Iris while they lay down roots in Malahide.

“I am slowly getting it (that sense) of how big the job is here.

“The interest since I have arrived has been amazing. It seems like everyone is reading the papers, the news and knows my face.

“Everybody has been wishing me good luck and I really appreciate that.

“I didn’t think it was this big but I am getting my head around it.” 

Hallgrimsson’s previous qualifications with his native Iceland (Euros and World Cup) as well as Jamaica (Copa America), boosting both their FIFA rankings en route, convinced the FAI of his credentials to end a decade-long wait for qualification.

That he’s not a household nation in these parts – unlike Roy Keane, Neil Lennon and even Lee Carsley who were linked with the vacancy – has attracted a degree of scepticism from certain quarters.

History has shown that the scrutiny will only swell, not that he'll be affected by any criticism.

“I have learned not to be bothered by someone else’s opinions,” he asserted. “I don’t use social media because if you stay in that world, other people’s thoughts, it can mess with what you think is right or wrong.

“Of course, you cannot avoid knowing what people are saying and that’s the reason why a good press officer is necessary for a national team coach - to tell me ‘these are the discussions going on’.

“For me reading things that are being said, the day would just be wasted. We need to really prioritise our time and my philosophy is that I will be judged by the people who hired me.” 

Ireland's Evan Ferguson in action against Switzerland. Picture: ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan

How Hallgrimsson, and by extension an FAI badly in need for the qualification bonanza, fare could well depend on Evan Ferguson.

Ireland’s great hope will start the Premier League season at Brighton and Hove Albion tipped to complement his Premier League strides with international success.

Having highlighted the influence of teenagers on the Euros – Spain’s Lamine Yamal and Kobbie Mainoo of England for example – the freedom and fearlessness he attaches to youth can be his asset during the challenges ahead.

“Evan is one of those guys who has the quality to win games,” he noted about the 19-year-old.

“If there’s a close game, he is the individual you look at to spark and create something.

“Like you saw in the Premier League, he has scored a great goal from outside of the box even though the team didn’t deserve to.

“The best team is a mixture of experience and younger players. Normally, the young are more fearless and show their skills etc.

“Just look at Spain and England too. They had players who could win the game due to their lack of fear. To mix it up is the best way because they need to rely on stability and guidance behind them from experienced players.” 

Once his backroom staff is confirmed – he was hoping for an affirmative answer from prospective assistant John O’Shea during a meeting in Waterford yesterday – Hallgrimsson intends introducing himself to the squad remotely on a collective Zoom call.

Assistance from O’Shea and the other coaches he retains will be leaned on to finalise his squad for the home double-header against England and Greece.

“I need to introduce myself pretty quickly,” he said of his seven-week countdown to the opening pair of matches.

“I've been looking at how they have done things – the hotel and training ground for instance – and if I can tweak a little bit.

“I’m somewhere between a manager and coach. I really love to be on the grass coaching but am also a good organiser, getting people to work together towards something.

“Some managers come in their suits and don’t step on the grass. Not me.”