Wembley litmus test can show Ireland progress report under Hallgrimsson

Competitive games between Ireland and England were always close encounters throughout the Jack Charlton era; an Ireland victory in Stuttgart '88, a World Cup 1990 draw in Cagliari, followed by two 1-1 games in the Euro 92 qualifying campaign.

In 1995, the two sides met once more in a far-from friendly affair, as the match was abandoned after 27 minutes, as a result of trouble in the England away section – Ireland were winning 1-0 at the time thanks to David Kelly's opening goal.

It took 18 long years for that frosty affair to finally thaw, as the two teams met in Wembley in 2013 – Shane Long opened the scoring before Frank Lampard levelled for the hosts. Again, two years later, the sides could not be separated, as the return friendly in Dublin ended scoreless.

England, however, have entered a new era in terms of international football and have found the cohesion and confidence to reach the latter stages of major tournaments, making consecutive Euros finals in 2020 and 2024, and they steamrolled Ireland during a Covid-era encounter at Wembley four years ago.

They backed it up at Lansdowne Road in September, highlighting the true gulf in class and quality between the sides, romping to a 2-0 victory in what was Heimir Hallgrimsson’s first game in charge.

Two months on, and the manager has a chance to see whether his side have improved, as they go head-to-head at the iconic stadium this evening, and while no one is expecting miracles, there is a sense that Hallgrimsson feels that his side will be a lot more organised and, as a result, competitive.

With all the focus on next year’s World Cup qualifiers, the away day at England could provide a blueprint on how to approach the games on the road against the top seeded sides in the