John O’Shea and the Republic of Ireland endured a miserable day in Bordeaux as Belgium romped to a 3-0 win at Euro 2016.
The Sunderland skipper captained Ireland, who were looking to build on an opening draw with Sweden, but they were second best throughout despite entering half-time on level terms.
It took just two minutes after the restart for Belgium to break the deadlock as Romelu Lukaku fired past Darren Randolph, and 13 minutes later it was effectively game over as Axel Witsel dispatched a header into the net.
Ireland pushed in search of a route back into the game but that left space at the back and it was duly exploited, with Chelsea’s Eden Hazard racing down the wing before finding Lukaku who grabbed his second of the game.
It isn’t all doom and gloom for Ireland, though, with Saturday’s result meaning Italy top the group regardless of what happens against Martin O’Neill’s side on Wednesday (KO 8pm).
