Spanish expose McIlroy's lack of resources

Spain 3 Northern Ireland

There must have been moments here on Saturday during Northern Ireland's latest capitulation to Spain when Sammy McIlroy queried his commitment to the cause. Two years into his job as national team manager, McIlroy is wanted by Stoke to fill their vacancy, a post that must have appeared seriously tempting while he witnessed all Ireland's inadequacies laid bare before him.

McIlroy, who watched the game from the stand in the Carlos Belmonte Stadium because he was serving a one-game touchline ban, has, apparently, no interest in the Stoke job. "Sammy will not be taking any other job,'' declared Jim Boyce, the Irish Football Association's president. "He's staying on as it's the job he's always wanted.''

McIlroy's enthusiasm will surely wane in Belfast on Wednesday though if Ukraine do not pay for Ireland's wretched start to their European Championship qualifying campaign. The manager can only pick the players at his disposal but the gulf between hosts who included six Real Madrid players and opponents able to call upon only three men from the top half of the Premiership was nevertheless enormous.

McIlroy praised his players' industry but blamed them for the mistakes that led to all three goals. In so doing he seemed to overlook the fact that if one side dominates to the degree that Spain did, mistakes are bound eventually to occur. Players are only human after all, Ireland's evidently more so than most. Privately, one sensed, that McIlroy was celebrating his side's escape from a repeat of the 5-0 hiding they suffered against Spain last April.

"As far as the work-rate was concerned, I can't question the players,'' said McIlroy. "But I'm disappointed with the scoreline because we contributed to every goal. Colin Murdock was on his heels for the first one, the second goal was another mistake when we lost the ball from a throw-in. We had lost our shape and discipline by the time the third one went in. At this level you have got to limit the mistakes. You can't give the ball away. We had set out stall out to make things difficult for them but we had to be tight and disciplined and try and play on the break. But if you keep giving slack goals away you will struggle.''

Looking desperately cumbersome against players with a smooth refined technique whose passing was infinitely superior, Ireland were constantly on the back foot. Not once was Casillas in the Spanish goal tested. His only alarms came when Paul McVeigh just failed to connect with an early cross from Ireland's loan forward Keith Gillespie and later when Michael Hughes, a substitute, burst throw to shoot narrowly wide.

"We were up against a world class side and we knew we would be under the cosh for long periods,'' added McIlroy. "We could have shown better discipline and passing. When we did get the ball, our passing was sloppy.''

At least, Ireland enjoyed the tiny comfort of preventing Raul from notching the goal which would have made him Spain's all-time leading scorer. But by the time Raul departed midway through the second half after aggravating a thigh strain, Spain were well on the way to their second victory in Group Six.

Baraja had nodded in a cross from Xavi. Vicente who was involved in the move, later swerved a low drive against an upright before delivering the centre from which Guti crowned his debut with a header. Vicente and Baraja, Valencia's two players were the pick of Spain's bunch and Beraja was a deserved scorer of the Spaniard's third goal, his second, after George McCartney had blocked a drive for Morientes.

Spain 3 Northern Ireland 0
Baraja 19, 89, Guti 59

h-t: 1-0 Att: 16,000

SPAIN: Casillas; Michel Salgado (both Real Madrid), Puyol (Barcelona), Helguera; Bravo (both Real Madrid), Xavi (Barcelona), Baraja, Vicente (both Valencia); Joaquin, (Real Betis), Raul, Guti (both Real Madrid). Substitutes: Morientes (Real Madrid), for Raul, 66; Mendieta (Barcelona), for Joquin, 75; Capi (Real Betis), for Guti, 88.

Northern Ireland: Taylor (Fulham); A Hughes (Newcastle), Taggart (Leicester), Murdock (Preston), McCartney (Sunderland); Johnson (Birmingham), Lomas (West Ham), Mulryne, McVeigh (both Norwich), Horlock (Man City); Gillespie (Blackburn). Substitutes: McCann (Sunderland) for Taggart, 69; Healy (Preston) for McVeigh, 65; M Hughes (Wimbledon) for Horlock, 65.

Referee: M Lubos (Slovenia).