Heimir Hallgrimsson: Players’ mentality will elevate Ireland results

England manager Lee Carsley’s declaration that he would not belt out the words of ‘God Save The King’ sparked a vicious campaign in sections of the right-wing press in England, with some calls for him to be sacked on the spot.

Against that backdrop we’ve quietly had the fact that the Iceland-born coach of the Irish team has tried to do something that’s beyond the reach of many natives — learn the words of ‘Amhrán na bhFiann’.

Hallgrimsson smiles when he’s asked if he was trying to sing along when the TV cameras zoomed in on him appearing to do so when Ireland played in Helsinki last month.

“I have been trying to learn,” he admitted. “It’s hard. It’s one thing to know how to sing it but then you forget the words, you don’t know what they mean. I will get it at one point. The national anthem is something you should take pride in learning, even though you are a foreigner you should learn it — maybe not sing it, there’s probably a word that is wrong. It’s a nation’s pride to have the national anthem, I am trying my best.”

Learning on the job and trying his best are good metaphors for the work Hallgrimsson has done in his four-game spell in charge, with one win and three defeats. Some basic elements have been changed, in terms of how he works — holding training sessions on the eve-of-match at morning time instead of the standard, close to kick-off time, is one.

Having noted some brittleness in the squad he inherited, he has also floated the idea of adding a sports psychologist to the staff. Ireland often play better when they are behind in a game, playing with more freedom when there’s nothing to lose.

England away next Sunday could be another example of that, a potentially bruising night for Ireland, especially as injury means that reliables such as Gavin Bazunu, Séamus Coleman, Chiedozie Ogbene and Robbie Brady will be missing. Younger and less experienced players will be exposed to the rigours of a Wembley examination by England.

“I’ve said what we are missing is more and longer spells. The good times are increasing but we still have parts of games where we are not good. First half against Finland, not so good. First half against Greece, I think we were okay even though we had to defend for a long time, but in the second half once we had nothing to lose, we were really good and it was the same against Finland, once we had nothing to lose. It’s something we need to improve better.

“That is in part psychology, for sure. Do we need to bring in someone in that area? We have discussed it. Maybe it is not that good a moment now in a seven-day camp to bring in someone and change some things but I think if you want to bring in someone like that, as an observer in the beginning and then build the trust with the players.

“I guess as well that all the players will have a mental coach, or a psychologist at their club that they are using. But it comes with playing more together, the same players again and again, this trust, this belief and maybe this courage that’s needed when you’re an underdog playing against a strong nation.”

That challenge, to be more competitive against the better nations, will be crucial for Ireland in the short term in the Nations League, if they avoid relegation to League C, and then the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

Hallgrimsson likens that challenge — being better in the level you are at instead of dropping to an easier level where the tasks are softer — to the battle his players often face at club level, getting game time. Leave a Premier League club to get (hopefully) more action at a lower level (as many Ireland managers would have advised their players to do) or stick it out and prove your worth (as, say Glenn Whelan did over a decade in the Premier League at Stoke City).

“Do we want to try to be in Group B in the Nations League, playing against teams it is difficult to beat? Or do we want to go down a level so we can do better? And it’s the same with players: do they want to go down a level to get playing time, or do they want to improve where they are?

“ I want players that really want to push to become better and break into the squad where they are, rather than lowering the bar so they can jump.

“Of course you would like them to be playing, but I would like them to have that mentality of ‘I’m going to, I’m going to’, and as a team we need to improve to have the chance to qualify. So it starts with the players as they need that mentality as well.”

That mentality should emerge in a winnable game at home to a struggling Finland side but England away will tell more about how far this team has gone during Hallgrimsson’s short time in charge.