Katie McCabe is calmly aiming for the World Cup after Brilliant Sweden draw
Katie McCabe’s first half against Sweden looked to give Ireland a shock victory away against the # 2 ranked side in the world, before a late equalizer for the Swedes secured a 1-1 draw.
The result is nonetheless extremely impressive for the Irish side, leaving them in the lead for a play-off place in qualifying for next year’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
McCabe spoke to RTÉ after the match and toned down the tension at the time by saying that the team would focus on the remaining three qualifying matches against Georgia, Finland and Slovakia.
Sweden 1-1 Ireland: Katie McCabe stays calm despite brilliant results in Gothenburg
Ireland captain Katie McCabe has become one of the most impressive players in the WSL. She won both the player of the month and the goal of the month in October, and she has played a crucial role in Arsenal’s ongoing title task.
McCabe has regularly shone in the Irish green and on Tuesday night she did it once again. A happy rejection gave her the opening goal in a chalk match for the World Cup qualifiers.
Sweden 0-1 Ireland – Katie McCabe gives guests a shock lead against world number 2. Vera Pauw’s side hit the front just before the break #rtesoccer #SWEIRL
📺 https://t.co/GnumBfJKRv
📻 https://t.co/FDy5KofWIx
📱https://t.co/wH5tqlaBqQ pic.twitter.com/f0LRQqlb1L– RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) April 12, 2022
The deflection may have been the reason the goal was scored, but McCabe did not seem to mind, and it gave Ireland an unexpected lead against the second best team in the world. They would make a fantastic performance to seal a 1-1 draw.
After the match, McCabe spoke to RTÉ’s Tony O’Donoghue. Despite taking one of the most famous points in Irish women’s football history, McCabe was calm. She downplayed the gigantic nature of the result and said that the team needed to focus on the upcoming matches.
It was a tough match, we knew it was going to be a fight. They are not the second best in the world for no reason, but we went into the game completely focused on ourselves and what we had to do. One point away against Sweden – not a bad result.
It is another point on the way to qualifying for the World Cup. We have three more massive matches, so we are one step ahead. We are continuing now and our focus will be on Georgia in June.
We have Finland, Slovakia away, and then a big match against Georgia away as well. Step by step – we are completely focused on the job so hopefully we will get there.
McCabe seems to have the mentality that Ireland is on its way to the World Cup. They have really given themselves a fantastic chance, with Girls in Green stuck in the mix for a playoff spot from Group A.
The result against Sweden leaves Ireland in third place in the group with eight points, two points behind Finland with one match left. Ireland will also host Finland in September, a team that they brilliantly defeated away earlier in the campaign.
June 27 is the next time we get to see Ireland in a World Cup qualifier, away against Georgia. Katie McCabe and co have been in fantastic form over the past year, and they can definitely put themselves in contention for a trip down under with a win against the Georgians.