England’s neighbours Republic of Ireland hosted Greece in a Euro 2024 qualifying match, but lost 2-0.
Goals for the Greeks from former Celtic striker Georgios Giakoumakis and Giorgos Masouras ultimately ended Ireland’s hopes of qualifying.
They now find themselves nine points off of Greece in second, but with only two games left, it means their qualification hopes are over.
There were some slight positives in the performance, however, with Southampton midfielder Will Smallbone picking up some praise.
Will Smallbone ‘most creative’ for Ireland
Following the game, Irish outlet Balls.ie rated Smallbone’s involvement at a 6/10, but despite that, journalist Gary Connaughton had some positive words on his performance, saying:
“Came very close to opening the scoring inside five minutes, with his effort from the edge of the box well saved by the Greek goalkeeper. Smallbone showed some nice touches at times, producing some eye-catching first time layoffs to teammates.
“The Southampton man was arguably the most creative player in the side on the night, even if that had little impact on the final result. It was strange to see him taken off with 20 minutes to go.”
Smallbone has featured nine times so far this season for Russell Martin’s Saints, with the side not starting as well as most would have thought, currently placed tenth in the Championship after eleven games.
The 23-year-old looks to be a player sticking around though, with his performances at the start of the season earning him a new contract at the end of August, running until 2026.
He spent last season becoming a regular in the Championship at Stoke City, making 43 league appearances, scoring three times and assisting another five.
It is good to see him playing well for his national side too, and hopefully he brings that form with him back to St Mary’s.