Heimir Hallgrimsson is optimistic that Ireland's win over Bulgaria in Plovdiv proves pivotal for the national team, who are planning to launch a successful World Cup qualifying campaign later this year.
Seven games into his tenure as manager, Hallgrimsson believes that he has seen real signs that the group is becoming a team, which augers well for the autumn fixtures, where Ireland will go up against Hungary, Armenia, and either Denmark or Portugal for a place at next year’s tournament.
Hallgrimsson’s first six games were a mixed bag, as the new man in charge attempted to pick up the pieces of the previous Stephen Kenny era and begin the rebuild, winning two but losing four of the Nations League games played.
In truth, it was a case of learning on the job, as the new man went straight into competitive action in September and suffered two quick defeats in home games against England and Greece.
Two away games in October showed that the manager got the team moving in an upward trajectory with a come-from-behind victory in Helsinki before an impressive, albeit losing, performance in Athens.
Another win followed in Dublin as Ireland beat Finland for the second time in a month, however, there was a real danger that the Hallgrimsson project had been completely derailed at Wembley Stadium as Ireland suffered a humiliating 5-0 defeat.
Such was the devastation of that second-half collapse against England, it was difficult to even register the positive first half, where Ireland frustrated their top-seeded hosts, keeping it scoreless for the opening 45 minutes.
Four months on, Hallgrimsson went about righting that particular wrong in Plovdiv, and came away with a decent 2-1 win to begin the calendar year on the right note.
And it was a very pleasing victory for the manager, despite his immediate concerns about his side's second-half performance, which he called passive.
On reflection, the Icelander backtracked on his initial assessment and felt that his side never looked in any sort of danger and comfortably saw out the match to take the victory.
But what really pleased the manager was the implementation of the game-plan, which saw the team take the training ground concepts into the reality of the matchday situation.
Positive passing, strong decision-making, exploitation of space, compactness in defence, it all points to a team moving in the right direction, and Hallgrimsson heaped the praise on the players.
"The game-plan really worked," said the Ireland manager, speaking at the pre-match press conference.
"The goals were a magnificent example of what we wanted to do, and the players bought into that. That’s something with players playing more together, that the attacking game will always improve, but it needs time.
"I feel that they believe in what they are doing," he added. "They believe in the structure, the principles that we are doing. We see that and we’ll show them a lot of clips from last game, where actually what we are talking about with animations and stuff, they are doing the exact same on the pitch.
"And when that comes, a group becomes a team, there is always a reaction to one action, and that is when you have a good structure and confidence and believe in your team-mate, 'I’m going to do this, I believe my team-mate will do that if I do this’."
Hallgrimsson believes that the players have now set the benchmark for future performances, and as a result, it will lead to a healthy competition for places where anyone who is selected will be under no illusion that a substantial shift is expected.
"You cement your place with a good performance," said the manager. "First of all, the team performance and the things you should do, and then you add the spice with your quality on top of that.
"It’s always team first in my opinion at this level. Players are always showing a better and better benchmark. If you want to be in the team you need to do at least that, and then some to break into the team. That’s only going to move us forward step by step."
Hallgrimsson has urged his senior players to lead by example, and while he was full of praise for Robbie Brady before and after the first game with Bulgaria, he was just as complimentary when speaking about Josh Cullen and Matt Doherty, who both proved very influential at the Hristo Botev Stadium on Thursday night.
"He always pushes himself to the maximum… and to have a player like that, a leader on the pitch who will always do his maximum, that’s priceless," said Hallgrimsson, when asked of Cullen’s contribution.
"Since I came, he has been solid and consistent," added the manager, when asked about Doherty, who is set to win his 50th cap on Sunday.
"I think he showed good leadership skills, his contribution to both goals was a leader making decision on the pitch for the good of the team.
"Matt was brave for the goal. Not many players have that in them. We would always think that an Irish team player would sacrifice themselves for the national team. He did that and I had a lot of praise for his performance."
Watch Republic of Ireland v Bulgaria in the UEFA Nations League on Sunday from 7pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Listen to live commentary on Radio 1 Extra
