“I hated every minute of it.”
Mick McCarthy has said that he “hated every minute” of the Republic of Ireland’s 1-0 win over Gibraltar on Saturday evening.
Ireland opened their Euro 2020 qualification campaign with a hard-fought win over the Group D minnows in difficult conditions.
Jeff Hendrick got the only goal of the game in what was a truly dreadful match against the team ranked 177th in the world.
The game was devoid of any real quality, and it was played on an artificial surface beside a rock and an airport landing strip as the wind whipped relentlessly across the pitch.
The only good thing to say about it is that Ireland have gained three points and the match is over.
McCarthy said as much following the tie when he spoke to Irish television channel RTE.
The new Ireland boss admitted that his team had played poorly in a very bad game. He also suggested that the decision to play Matt Doherty on the right side of midfield, ahead of Seamus Coleman, didn’t work.
You can watch McCarthy’s interview with Tony O’Donoghue here:
'I hated every minute of it, it was horrible, I'm delighted to get out of it with a one-nil win' – Mick McCarthy typically honest in his analysis of his Republic of Ireland's performance against Gibraltar. #RTESoccer pic.twitter.com/euuIKoJq9u
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) March 23, 2019
