Updated at 23.58
IRELAND WERE BEATEN by Austria 1-0 in what was another disappointing display in tonight’s World Cup qualifier.
Following a first-half in which chances were few and far between, Austria improved after the break and gradually grew more dominant.
After a number of let-offs, the hosts finally made the breakthrough as David Alaba blasted the ball into the top of the net following a poor clearance from left-back Marc Wilson.
The result is expected to end Giovanni Trapattoni’s reign as Ireland manager, with the side now virtually certain to miss out on World Cup qualification.
The 21-year-old Alaba, whose father is Nigerian and mother Filipino, struck from the centre of the area at the Ernst Happel stadium in Vienna, the city of his birth.
This was a crucial loser-loses-all Group C qualifier that leaves Ireland’s hopes in tatters.
Sweden’s earlier 1-0 victory in Kazakhstan ensured they remain in pole position to take second place in the group behind runaway leaders Germany, whose 3-0 win in the Faroe Islands means they need only two more points from their final two games to ensure top spot in the group.
With the second-placed finishers hoping for a play-off place, victory in Vienna was crucial.
If Sweden take just one more point from their final two games, that would be enough to eliminate Ireland, while Austria must pull back a three-point deficit to the Scandinavians.The two sides meet in Sweden next month in a definite winner-takes-all clash.
Ireland played both of those sides over the past four days, having all begun Friday level on points.
But defeats to both rivals competing with them for second place in the group have as good as ended Ireland’s hopes, particularly with a trip to Germany to come in October.
YouTube credit: Oppafoxistyle
Additional reporting by AFP
