Republic of Ireland midfielder Will Smallbone feels the squad must buy into a belief that World Cup qualification is possible ahead of the final warm-up match before the clash with Hungary in September.
Amid some of the most miserable times for the nation in terms of both results and performances in this decade, Heimir Hallgrimsson will begin his first outright group campaign with six matches to come in the space of 10 weeks.
Hungary, Armenia and new Nations League champions Portugal stand in Ireland’s way, with the Boys in Green considered an outsider in the bid to top the group or even secure a play-off.
For now, Luxembourg await Ireland tonight in a friendly.
Hallgrimsson has referenced reducing the schedule of some players in this window with a view to being fresher for tournament football 12 months later, an eye-opening viewpoint given the current outlook for the side ranked 60th in the world and without qualification for a World Cup since 2002.
Smallbone, who played 81 minutes of the 1-1 draw with Senegal after an injury-hit season, believes the mindset is something the players have to pass heed to.
“I think the manager’s views will always transfer onto the players,” he said in an exclusive interview with RTÉ Sport ahead of tonight’s friendly.
“We’ve got a real tight-knit group that are looking towards the same goal.
“I think we need to believe we can be there. I think we’ve shown a steady progression over the last few camps and even on Friday, I think against the top nation, it was a good performance from us.
“I think we need to be positive, forward-thinking and give ourselves the best opportunity to be there next June.
“Winning is what’s going to get us to the World Cup. So we need to have winning become a habit. And going into these games, the performance is nice, but I think ultimately winning and getting in the habit of winning is what’s best, starting with Luxembourg.”
Smallbone played in a more defensive midfield role against Senegal, despite the manager indicating he sees him being utilised in a more advanced location on the pitch.
The Southampton man, who has 12 caps to his name so far, is happy to operate in either role.
The Irish midfield could be about to evolve with Bosun Lawal, Killian Phillips and Jack Taylor making strides in this camp with call-ups and appearances.
The competition is welcome, says Smallbone.
“Maybe I did end up in more of a defensive role on Friday, but I’m just happy to do whatever.
“I think we play with two almost ‘old school’ midfielders is the best way to describe it, with a licence for one of us to get forward and join up with the attacking play and get in the box. It’s enjoyable.
“We have our ways when we get the ball to free up our wingers and get crosses into the box and then when defending, it’s a bit of a slightly different shape.
“The goal for everyone is obviously going to the World Cup and winning games is what’s going to get us there.
Smallbone was called up in the Ireland manager’s first squad, but having sat out most of the English season, he also lost out on caps in a green shirt.
Returning to the squad now, he has noticed some differences.
“Obviously it has been a little while for me since I’ve been in the camp because of injury.
“The first camp for me [under Hallgrimsson] was September, so it was all about just starting off the new ideas under the new manager. I missed all the camps in between and to come back here, I could see a real progression in the team strength and the way the team’s going.
“I think being a bit more harder to beat is one of the main ones.
“We’ve got a lot of the squad maybe coming into their mid to late-20s.
“I think that is a good age to really take onus on ourselves, to get ourselves through these [qualification] games.
“And we’ve got enough experience now between us to be able to solve problems on the pitch ourselves and leave ourselves in better situations overall.”
