Republic of Eire 4-0 Qatar: Callum Robinson hat-trick sees off World Cup hosts in pleasant

Callum Robinson scored a hat-trick because the Republic of Eire beat World Cup hosts Qatar 4-0 to win back-to-back video games for the primary time since March 2019.

Robinson, whose first-half double in Azerbaijan on Saturday arrange a 3-0 World Cup qualifying victory, repeated the trick inside 13 minutes on the Aviva Stadium after which added a 3rd eight minutes after the restart to turn into the primary Eire participant to finish a treble since Robbie Keane towards Gibraltar in October 2014.

The West Brom striker, who discovered himself within the headlines final week after revealing he had not been vaccinated towards Covid-19 regardless of twice testing constructive for the virus, had scored just one senior worldwide purpose earlier than assembly up along with his team-mates this month.

Defender Shane Duffy helped himself to a fourth as supervisor Stephen Kenny, who had gained solely one in all his first 16 video games in cost, celebrated a second victory inside 4 days, albeit tinged with unhappiness on the data that his facet won’t be in Qatar when world soccer convenes subsequent 12 months.

For Felix Sanchez’s facet, who misplaced 3-0 in Portugal on the weekend, it proved a sobering night as their winless run as they try to realize worldwide expertise forward of the match stretched to 6 video games with Republic keeper Caoimhin Kelleher not having to make a save of word on his first senior begin.

Eire, ranked seven locations beneath the guests by FIFA, may hardly have gotten off to a greater begin as a crew that includes 5 modifications to the one which gained in Baku carried that momentum into their newest mission.

Robinson was once more the person who set the ball rolling, exchanging passes with Jamie McGrath and Conor Hourihane to work his manner in from the left flank earlier than unleashing a shot which looped up off unlucky defender Bassam Hisham Alrawi and over keeper Meshaal Barsham.

The Qataris had been nonetheless bemoaning their misfortune when their evening took an extra flip for the more serious inside 9 minutes when Karim Boudiaf’s clumsy problem on McGrath despatched the midfielder sprawling contained in the field and left Northern Irish referee Keith Kennedy with little possibility however to level to the spot.

Robinson instantly grabbed the ball and confidently despatched the keeper the improper technique to make it 2-0 in entrance of a delighted diminished capability sell-out crowd of 25,749.

Rocked by the double setback, Qatar step by step began to work their manner into the sport and skipper Hassan Al-Haydos drilled vast from 25 yards with 20 minutes gone as Al-Haydos and Akram Afif began to tug the strings.

Nonetheless, with Hourihane and Jeff Hendrick giving the house facet a midfield base and Matt Doherty and Enda Stevens revelling within the house out vast, they threatened to increase their benefit.

John Egan headed over from Hourihane’s Thirty fifth-minute nook, however central defensive accomplice Duffy needed to be at his finest to nip the ball off Al-Haydos’ toe after he had been performed in cleverly by Afif.

Barsham was spared by his crossbar with 5 minutes of the half remaining after Chiedozie Ogbene had received his head to Robinson’s inviting cross, however Kenny’s males went in on the break reflecting upon half a job effectively completed.

Cyrus Christie changed Doherty, who had required remedy earlier than the break, forward of the restart, however the sample remained largely the identical with Afif inflicting issues, however not the place it mattered and Eire persevering with to look the stronger.

They struck once more with 53 minutes gone when Robinson ran on to Hendrick’s nicely-weighted through-ball and slid a shot previous Barsham’s despairing dive, and the keeper was choosing the ball out of his internet for a fourth time inside six minutes after Duffy had powered residence a towering header from Hourihane’s nook.

Hendrick drilled an 81st-minute shot simply vast as Eire pressed for a fifth, however they left the pitch greater than glad with their evening’s work.

Kenny: Robinson has extra to offer

Stephen Kenny is hoping in-form striker Callum Robinson realises how necessary he could possibly be to the Republic of Eire after scoring 5 targets in his final two video games.

“He is excellent within the group, he is a extremely bubbly character with a variety of decency, a variety of good factors as an individual,” the supervisor stated.

“However as a participant, he has extra to offer. He is clearly missed that a lot, which has been troublesome, so to get these 5 targets now will give him actual perception over the subsequent whereas, I hope.

“Once we began marking out medium and long-term methods for the crew, one of many issues that we had been
doing, the Nations League in June, our ambition is to win the group.

“We’ll take the Nations League extraordinarily significantly with a dedication to win the group as a result of that provides you a Euro play-off.

“We are able to try to try this. That is the ambition, that is what I wish to do and I really feel it is practical to wish to try this.”

Qatar boss Felix Sanchez was left to bemoan a disastrous begin from which his facet by no means recovered.

He stated: “It was a tricky recreation for us, in fact, clearly from the very starting. We conceded a really early purpose and after that we confirmed we weren’t as we speak on the stage that we anticipated to be.

“However that is soccer. We have to be taught from our errors. If you find yourself taking part in at this stage, you want to be at your high stage.

“We would have liked efficiency as we speak and we could not, so we have to maintain working and attempt to repair the issues that we did improper on this recreation.”

Opta stats

• Eire earned their first residence win in any competitors since November 2019 (3-1 vs New Zealand), ending a run of seven residence video games with out victory (D5 L2).
• This was Eire’s greatest victory since beating Oman 4-0 in a pleasant in August 2016.
• Callum Robinson grew to become the primary participant to attain 2+ targets in consecutive appearances for Republic of Eire since Robbie Keane in June 2013.

What’s subsequent?

The Republic of Eire will play their ultimate two World Cup Qualifiers subsequent month. They host Portugal on Thursday 11 November earlier than travelling to Luxembourg on Sunday 14 November. Each video games might be proven reside on Sky Sports activities.