How would you like to see the Boys in Green line up in Chisinau? Goal takes a look at three possibilities...

The Republic of Ireland narrowly scraped a win at home to Georgia on Thursday and Martin O'Neill faced criticism for the manner in which his team performed, particularly in the first half.

A visit to Moldova is up next and O'Neill is without Jeff Hendrick and Robbie Brady, so the Boys in Green boss has been forced into making a couple of changes at least.

Here Goal looks at some potential Ireland XIs for the game against Moldova.

By Ryan Kelly

Despite a disappointing overall display against Georgia, Martin O'Neill is unlikely to make too many changes for encounter with Moldova and rightly so. However the former Celtic boss will have to shake up his midfield.

Veteran players Glenn Whelan and Wes Hoolahan started on the bench in Dublin, but should come into the team in place of Jeff Hendrick and Robbie Brady. A midfield foundation of Whelan and James McCarthy will allow Hoolahan the freedom to pick apart the Moldovan backline as well as bring the likes of Jonathan Walters and James McClean into the game.

McClean struggled in terms of his delivery against Georgia, but the former Derry City midfielder was a potent threat in the box and on another day he would have gone home with a goal. His will to get forward and drag the team up the pitch is an asset and as such he should be retained in the starting XI.

While Shane Long has toiled in vain in front of goal - he hasn't scored since the pre-Euro 2016 warm-up friendly against the Netherlands - O'Neill should persist with the Southampton striker and a relatively easy contest against the team ranked 161st in Fifa's world ranking table is an opportunity to regain some confidence.

Stephen Ward's position in the team is safe given the lack of viable alternatives within the squad, but the Burnley full-back was suspect in possession against Georgia, astonishingly running the ball out of play while under no pressure whatsoever. Ciaran Clark could arguably feature at left back, but his partnership with Shane Duffy in the centre is one that will strengthen the more they play together.

By Ronan Murphy

What we have seen from Ireland in one qualification campaign and the first part of the second under Martin O'Neill does not work.

The Boys in Green barely qualified for Euro 2016, and would not have played at it or reached the knockout stage of it were it not for the fact that Uefa decided to let everybody and their dog get in through finishing third in qualifying and at the tournament proper.

O'Neill's players only ever seem to start to play when they have nothing to lose, so continuing on down the same path seems crazy at this stage, as the system of relying on luck and moments of magic is bound to come crashing down sooner rather than later.

What is needed is a fresh approach, and a relatively easy game against the likes of Moldova can be where that approach begins.

Against Georgia, only Seamus Coleman seemed capable of turning the match around, and pushing Ireland's best player further up the pitch will allow him to become more involved and have a better chance of dictating the play. Putting John O'Shea back in the starting XI can then balance the lack of experience in the backline with Cyrus Christie playing right-back.

Wes Hoolahan can pull the strings and control the middle of the field, but asking James McClean to do anything other than run at the full-back seems like a lesson in failure. For that reason, Callum O'Dowda should be allowed to stake his claim for a starting wide role, as the Bristol City winger showed more in his few minutes of international football than McClean has in 45 games for Ireland.

In fact, the 21-year-old probably has a far greater chance of finding Shane Long in the box with his crosses, and has the vision to pick out the Southampton attacker with some slide rule passes that can exploit the Moldovan defence.

Austria in November will be a huge test, and the time to start planning for it is now, because if O'Neill continues with the old predictable system in Vienna, David Alaba and co. will ease to three points.

By Alan O'Brien

Continuing to eschew the 4-3-1-2 formation to which the Republic of Ireland's talent pool looks best suited produced yet another anaemic attacking performance against Georgia on Thursday, in which Martin O'Neill's chosen midfield looked completely devoid of creativity in the absence of Wes Hoolahan.

Injuries to Robbie Brady and Harry Arter, coupled with Jeff Hendrick's suspension, limits O'Neill's options in that area ahead of the visit to Moldova on Sunday.

Glenn Whelan, omitted against the Georgians, remains available to reassume duties at the base of midfield however, which would allow the positionally questionable James McCarthy - who was at least partly responsible for five of Ireland's six concessions at Euro 2016 - to occupy a more suitable role.

David Meyler's energy and defensive contribution renders the Hull City ever-present a natural choice to deputise for Hendrick, completing a ball-winning midfield triumvirate that ensures Hoolahan's talents can be safely accommodated.

Shane Long's continued isolation in O'Neill's preferred 4-1-4-1 can be resolved by renewing his partnership with Jonathan Walters, who despite his poor recent form for club and country remains a preferable option to Aberdeen's untested Adam Rooney or winger James McClean.

How would you like to see Ireland line up? Let us know!