A special reference to Baldock’s defeat was made by the Irish national team coach, Heimir Halgrimsson, at the press conference for tomorrow’s game with Greece (13/10, 9:45 pm), as part of the Nations League.
“I think the loss of Baldock will bring them (the Greeks) closer together. These moments simply unite not only them, but everyone and make you realize that there is more to life than football.”commented the Icelandic coach.
“I have a certain connection with this defeat because Baldock played for my hometown team when he was 18 years old. He played one season there. Of course, our condolences go out to his family and loved ones. I think it will be the same team, maybe with more emotion. Whether that’s good or bad, we’ll see tomorrow.”.
As for the state of his own team? “Everyone is ready and wants to play this game. A mix of professional opinion, personal opinion and then the coaches will decide what is best for the team.”.
Asked if Ireland is easy to analyze, he replied: “I don’t really care if we’re easy to break, if we’re hard to play against. I wish we were the kind of team people hate playing against.”.
However, there are areas where Ireland needs improvement and Hallgrimsson did not deny this:
“There were some moments in the game against Finland when we didn’t play well and we have to reduce those moments. Ireland play best when they play forward, when they are organized, when they can fight, when they can duel, I think those are our best moments.”.
And he added: “Hesitation is not the Irish team’s strong point. We just have to find ways to improve these things, to be organized, more stable or consistent in what we do. And to make decisions faster”.