Given the fact that Ireland had already been relegated heading into tonight's final UEFA Nations League clash against Denmark, there was nothing to play for in terms of points.
But what did we learn from the match in Aarhus as Martin O'Neill's side avoided defeat by securing a 0-0 draw against the Danes? Former Ireland defender Gary Breen joined us at full-time to discuss the Irish performance and the wider implications of a Nations League campaign without a victory.
"I didn't see any passing structures whatsoever. All I saw was us defending deep in numbers, men behind the ball blocking up the path as we normally do and any time we got it, it was normally a long ball forward and poor, old O'Brien up front on his own... what type of service is that for him to work with?" he said.
And that's it in Aarhus! Denmark dominating the possession stats and Obafemi has now been capped in a competitive game #DENIRL #COYBIG #NationsLeague pic.twitter.com/5MMZXgSYnS
— Off The Ball (@offtheball) November 19, 2018
As he pointed out, Denmark also had key players missing but still reached the 70% mark in terms of possession and "it felt like we were down to 10-men", even though Ireland had the full complement of players for the full 90 minutes.
"The frustration is that there's no work being done on the training field and we keep saying it, but it's pretty evident that it is and it's not going to change," Breen added.
In a hypothetical situation where one of the elite managers were to take charge of the team, Breen feels they could eke more out of the current squad.
"I think a good coach would make a difference with this team. There's no doubt about it," he said.
"As a professional player, I think their mood has been determined by the fact that they're literally going out there and they don't know what they're supposed to be doing."
And he added of the senior players': "I've no doubt in my mind, they're doing as much as they can. But I don't think that the manager is."
