Czech Republic 0-0 Northern Ireland
David Healy was substituted by the visitors
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By Matthew Champion. |  |
Wednesday, 14, Oct 2009 09:23
By James Christie
Northern Ireland ended their World Cup qualifying campaign on a high note by achieving a goalless draw with the Czech Republic.
The result saw the Irish finish fourth in their group, two places away from a play-off spot.
With the Czechs needing to win tonight and relying on Slovenia tripping up against Poland (they didn't) the game in Prague had a bit of a dead rubber feel to it.
Deprived of three players through injury, Northern Ireland manager Nigel Worthington made three changes to the side which lost to Slovakia.
He could only watch his side get bogged down in their own half during the opening 15 minutes as the Czech team showed their determination to go out of the World Cup reckoning in style.
They clearly had the personnel to achieve this since stars such as Arsenal's Tomas Rosicky and Chelsea's Petr Cech made their starting line up.
Little wonder that they were the favourites to win the group but the empty seats in the stadium were a sign of how disappointing their campaign has been.
Northern Ireland nearly rubbed salt in the wound five minutes before the interval when a lobbed pass found Celtic man Niall McGinn clear on goal. The winger's scuffed shot had just enough on it to find the net with Cech stranded on the deck having committed too early. But the keeper skilfully pawed the ball away for a corner.
The Czech side covered their embarrassment by breaking quickly with David Jarolim's shout for a penalty being drowned out by the referee's half-time whistle.
McGinn started the second half by displaying superb touch to control a long pass and beat his marker. Czech defenders' hearts were in their mouths as the 22-year-old screwed a shot across the face of the Czech six-yard box from the tightest of angles. Had any green shirts managed to keep pace with McGinn then Northern Ireland could have taken the lead.
Instead, the move provoked a flurry of activity. A Czech attacker sporting an Alice band (a bit of a Czech tradition) forced a corner from which goalkeeper Maik Taylor, backpedalling towards his own goal-line, tipped the ball over the bar.
Northern Ireland's leading goalscorer David Healey responded by firing a shot over the bar from a right-wing position but it was to be the gloves-wearing lone striker's best chance before he was substituted 20 minutes from time.
A lack of penetration was to hold the Irish back throughout the game, a shame as the foreplay provided by the jinking runs of McGinn was a pleasure to behold.
One mazy dribble involving back-heeled one-twos which took the former Derry player from the left touchline to the centre of the pitch was worthy of Lionel Messi.
More messy than Messi was a woeful Milan Baros shot in the 81st minute which landed nearer the corner flag than the back of the net, a reminder of why the Czech forward never quite made the grade at Liverpool. A few minutes later and the ex-Villa player was a hair-breadth away from getting a head to a fine cross with the goal in sight. Had he not swapped his long hair for a crew cut he might well have connected.
The urgency of the Czech play in the closing minutes showed just how much the East European nation wanted to win.
But it was not to be, Irish keeper Taylor shouting himself hoarse as his defence weathered the final storm to keep their fifth clean sheet of the ten-game qualifying campaign.
Both the Irish and the Czechs came unstuck with defeats against the 'Slo' nations - Slovakia, who gained automatic qualification, and Slovenia, who will go into the play-offs.
Nigel Worthington has stated his determination to continue as Northern Ireland manager and, with four victories in the qualifying phase, he stands a good chance of doing so.