Paul Doyle was at the Avivia Stadium for the Guardian and this is how he saw tonight’s annihilation of the Irish unfold.

Should Martin O’Neill go? That was a clueless and naive a tactical performance I’ve ever seen from Ireland. They gave Denmark’s players far too much space in wide areas, but with the game still salvageable, Martin O’Neill made a couple of extraordinary substitutions at half-time. The introduction of Wes Hoolahan and Aiden McGeady afforded Denmark even more space, leaving Ireland with no holding midfielder against one of the best playmakers in world football. Irish left-back Stephen Ward ended up playing centre-half and gave away a goal , his second gift of the night to the Danes. It was a total mess.

Great Danes: Christian Eriksen was the stand-out player for Denmark, bagging himself the match ball with a sublime hat-trick comprised of two thunderbolts and one deft purler. His hat-trick was bookended by a Cyrus Christie own goal and Nicklas Bendtner penalty to complete a thoroughly miserable evening for Ireland, who opened the scoring through Shane Duffy after just six minutes. It seems a long time ago now.

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Peep! Peep! Peeeeep! It’s all over in Dublin, where Denmark have thrashed the Republic of Ireland to earn their place at Russia 2018. As the Danish players celebrate, Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane can only look on with their arms folded. Out on the pitch, their charges look devastated, but can have no complaints. They simply weren’t anywhere near good enough and didn’t deserve to advance from this tie after a performance of such risible quality. It’s difficult to believe they actually led this match at one point ...

90+2 min: We’re in the second of two minutes of added time and Ireland, who have been dire, have been thoroughly outclassed by a Denmark side who thoroughly deserve their place at the World Cup finals next summer.

Ireland’s humiliation is now complete. Lord Nick smashes the ball past Darren Randolph to heap more misery on the Irish.

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89 min: Nicklas Bendtner is tripped by James McClean in the Ireland penalty area. The referee plays advantage, only for Randolph to save well from Sisto. The referee then points to the spot.

88 min: With the ball at his feet on the left wing, Aiden McGeady tries to pick out Daryl Murphy at the near post. It’s cleared.

86 min: Wes Hoolahan tries to slalom his way into the Denmark penalty area, but meets a wall of resistance. The ball breaks to James McClean, but Denmark clear.

84 min: Denmark substitution: Nicklas Bendtner on for Nicolai Jorgensen. He may have scored a hat-trick, but Christian Eriksen is no longer the classiest player on the pitch.

80 min: Denmark win a corner, with Ireland’s players looking completely dead on their feet and wishing they were anywhere but out on that pitch getting hammered. They’re chasing shadows at the moment and it’s a little difficult to see where the four goals they require in the next 10 minutes are going to come from. Shane Long had a good chance to pull one back shortly after coming on, but fired high over the bar after being put through on goal. He can’t buy a goal at the moment and his confidence is clearly at rock bottom.

79 min: Corrections and clarifications dept: It was Yussuf Poulsen who made way for Andreas Cornelius earlier, not Pione Sisto, as I erroneously recorded for posterity. That’s fixed now.

75 min: Not long on the field, Andreas Cornelius sent a cross into the box, which Stephen Ward miscontrolled. The ball broke into space in the penalty area and Eriksen was quickest to react, sprinting to rifle it send it screaming past Randolph as Ward scrambled to recover. Now is probably not the time to point Big Fingers of Blame, but Ward has had a game to forget tonight, in a largely dreadful collective Irish performance.

Eriksen secures his hat-trick with a truly venomous finish, pouncing to hammer the ball into the top right-hand corner after more dithering in the Irish defence. That is a fine, fine hat-trick.

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71 min: Ireland substitution: Shane Long on for Ciaran Clark. Jeff Hendrick drops back into the heart of the Ireland defence as Martin O’Neill sends on a player who hasn’t scored in his past 30 appearances for club and country to try and bag a hat-trick in the next 20 minutes. These are desperate times for Ireland, who need three goals. Wes Hoolahan and Robbie Brady are now in the heart of Ireland’s midfield.

70 min: Denmark substitution: Yussuf Poulsen off, Andreas Cornelius on.

68 min: On Sky Sports, Ray Houghton bemoans Ireland’s policy of trying to get the ball forward too quickly, plus the utter futility of playing aimless long and high balls in the direction of Wes Hoolahan. He’s about 5ft 4in in his socks, so he’s not going to win any of them.

66 min: Leaning backwards to get on the end of a cross from Stephen Ward, James McClean heads high over the Denmark cross-bar.

65 min: That was another splendid finish from Eriksen, who latched on to a pass from Sisto 20 yards from goal and placed the ball beyond Randolph’s dive with laser-like precision. Ireland can have no complaints about tonight’s inevitable defeat - they’ve been outplayed by a vastly superior team tonight. The defending there was atrocious.

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Well dat’s dat, den, as we say in Ireland. With acres of space and all the time in the world at their disposal, Denmark advance on Ireland’s goal in a move that ends with Christian Eriksen curling the ball beyond Darren Randolph from the edge of the Ireland penalty area.

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61 min: Robbie Brady takes the free-kick, but his delivery bounces in the Danish penalty area and sails straight into the clutches of Kasper Schmeichel.

60 min: The clock ticks past the hour mark with Ireland needing to score two goals without reply to qualify for the World Cup. They win a free-kick wide on the right, about 40 yards from goal for a foul on Cyrus Christie.

59 min: There’s a break in play as Yussuf Poulsen receives medical attention after a clash of heads with Stephen Ward.

57 min: A poor ball in to the Denmark penalty area from Aiden McGeady sends Denmark galloping up the field on the counter-attack. Christian Eriksen finds himself through on goal, but is unable to beat Darren Randolph, who saves his shot. The ball doesn’t break particularly kindly for Thomas Delaney, who fails to score on the follow-up.

A let-off for Ireland there, as Eriksen didn’t have the necessary speed to get in quite the position he would have liked to beat Randolph.

55 min: Just before that corner, Denmark made their first substitution: Jens Stryer Larsen makes way for Peter Ankersen.

54 min: Wes Hoolahan tries to run on to a Daryl Murphy flick-on and wins a corner for his team. Robbie Brady sends the ball into the penalty area, where Shane Duffy’s firm downward header poses Kasper Schmeichel few problems.

53 min: Randolph pushes the ball behind for a corner after Christian Eriksen plays the ball into the path of Sisto, who gets it on his right foot and unleashes a shot.

52 min: Denmark are dominating possession, while trying to slow the game down. They dawdle over free-kicks and throw-ins, prompting plenty of fruity language from assorted Ireland players being picked up by the pitch-side microphones.

51 min: Denmark attack with Jens Stryer Larsen on the ball down the left flank. He plays it inside to Sisto, but Randolph comes to the rescue for Ireland.

49 min: Kasper Schmeichel boots it long for Denmark and minor chaos ensues. The ball breaks for Christian Eriksen, who floats it into the penalty area from the right. Stephen Ward makes a vital interception with Nicolai Jorgensen lurking. A corner for Denmark, from which nothing comes.

48 min: Denmark win a free-kick for a Duffy foul on Pione Sisto.

47 min: Ireland win a corner, which Robbie Brady swings into the mixer. Yussuf Poulsen heads clear for Denmark.

46 min: With Ireland fans everywhere shouting “Alexa/Siri, make Ireland score two goals without reply!” the second half begins. Ireland have made two substitutions, with Wes Hoolahan and Aiden McGeady on for David Meyler and Harry Arter.

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The referee brings the curtain down on a first half that could scarcely have started better for Ireland, but went quickly downhill. They opened the scoring through Shane Duffy, but conceded two in three minutes as a Cyrus Christie own goal and a fine strike from Christian Eriksen gave Denamrk the advantage. The Danes are in the box seat now, with Ireland needing at least two goals to advance.

44 min: A poor defensive header from Andreas Bjelland allows Ireland to turn the screw, but a good opportunity goes begging when Ward fouls Andreas Christensen on the left side of the Danish penalty area and the referee blows for a foul.

42 min: Ireland attack, with Harry Arter eschewing a shooting opportunity only to pick out Robbie Brady on the left instead. A poor delivery from the Burnley man results in a Denmark goal kick.

40 min: Replays of Denmark’s second goal will make for bleak viewing for Ireland left-back Stephen Ward. Near the halfway line with the ball at his feet, he attempted to take on and beat Pione Sisto, failed to do so and within seconds Darren Randolph was picking the ball out of the Irish net.

38 min: Ireland lump the ball long and Daryl Murphy gets the flick on. James McClean attempts to pounce in the Denmark penalty area, but the ball carries through to Danish goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.

36 min: Going back to Denmark’s first goal ... Sisto teed up Christensen, who should have buried the ball but could only poke it feebly on to the post. It rebounded from the foot of the post and hit Cyrus Christie before trundling almost apologetically over the line.

33 min: That was a fine strike from Eriksen to round off a Danish move that began when Stephen Ward gifted possession to Yussuf Poulsen on the the halfway line. A three-man Danish ended with the ball being played to the feet of an unmarked Eriksen on the edge of the area and he rifled it into the top left-hand corner. A real moment of quality from the best player on the pitch.

32 min: Christian Eriksen fires home off the underside of the crossbar from the edge of the Irish penalty area to round off a blistering Danish counter-attack in fine style. Ireland need at leaast two more goals to have any chance of qualifying for Russia 2018.

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31 min: It was far from pretty but they all count. Denmark had a corner, which Christian Eriksen took short, catching Ireland’s defence napping. The ball was eventually played into the penalty area, where Pione Sisto did well to tee up Christiansen with a deft back-heel. Oh, hold on ...

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29 min: Denmark equalise from a corner and have the advantage. Andreas Christensen pokes the ball goalwards, it hits the post and then bobbles over the line off Cyrus Christie.

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27 min: This has been a fascinating match so far, with referee Szymon Marciniak helping to add to the gaiety of the game by allowing it to flow and playing advantage as often as possible. It may well be down to the fact that he’s a former player, but his common sense approach has made for a very entertaining game so far.

25 min: Pione Sisto attempts to dink the ball into the Ireland penalty area for Christensen to run on to, but his pass is over-hit and goes straight into the waiting arms of Darren Randolph.

23 min: James McClean runs between two defenders on to a through ball from Robbie Brady and closes in on the Denmark goal. From a tight angle, he aims for the far post and watches in agony as the ball rolls just the wrong side of it. Replays suggest he might have been offside, but the linesman kept his flag down.