Mark Noble is eligible to play for the Republic of Ireland.
He was born in England.
He has played for England.
He has even captained England.
But his Grandparents are Irish.
According to FIFA, this makes him eligible.
It’s that simple.
If Mark was to play for the Republic of Ireland in their next game against Gibraltar - nobody could have a problem.
Not the English FA.
Not the FA of Ireland.
Neither UEFA nor FIFA.
Nobody could have a problem at all.
Nobody except Mark that is.
After all is said and done, with rulebooks checked and applications processed, there remains only one simple hurdle in the path of the player playing for the birth country of his Grandparents.
Mark Noble does not want to play for the Republic of Ireland.
Or perhaps more pertinently, Mark Noble does not want to play for the Republic of Ireland, yet.
And it’s the use of the word ‘yet’ that has turned this story into a debate.
Dave Kitson was available to represent the Irish national side.
He made it clear from the beginning that he didn’t feel Irish and didn’t feel it would be right to play for Ireland.
He falls into the category of ‘not wanting to play for Ireland’.
So too, do Zat Knight, Anton Ferdinand and Curtis Davis.
All players eligible to play for Ireland.
All players who’d rather have represented their country of birth and were prepared to finish their careers uncapped than represent the birth country of a member of their family.
The difference between all of them and Mark of course, is the little word ‘yet’.
Mark has already told us he would rather play for England.
He has told us this for many years.
And for that he deserved respect.
He was biding his time for an opportunity.
But as the door opened with the retirement of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, it subsequently closed with the call-ups of Jack Colback and Fabian Delph.
This was the chance Mark had waited for.
Instead it went to two younger, fresher midfielders.
If Mark wants to play international football, he will most probably now have to switch allegiance.
A topic which is not unfamiliar.
The Republic of Ireland have benefited aplenty in the past.
Most nations have at some stage.
Only last year did a tug of war take place between Spain and Brazil for the services of Diego Costa.
The same Spain and Brazil who were favourites to lift the World Cup.
Diego had the opportunity to play for both and chose Spain.
He turned down the chance to play for Brazil in a World Cup in Brazil.
That’s how much he wanted to play for the Spanish national team.
Winners of the actual tournament Germany, had two Polish born players.
Runners-up Argentina had a Frenchman.
Third place Netherlands had players born in Portugal, Canada and Switzerland.
But for every Miroslav Klose, Lucas Podolski and Gonzalo Higuain - there is a Kevin Prince-Boateng.
Mercenary extraordinaire.
At the age of 27, he has amassed a grand total of fifteen caps for Ghana.
Seven of which came in World Cup tournaments.
Five in World Cup build up games.
And only three other ‘non World Cup related’ appearances.
You get the feeling if he was in Mark’s situation, he might wait until the Euro 2016 campaign starts to show more than just promise.
No show of national pride like in the case of Diego, who turned down the opportunity of playing for his country of birth at a World Cup in his country of birth.
You don’t get much more noble than that.
Not every switch of allegiance is as extreme a case of course.
For every Kevin-Prince, there is a Kevin Kilbane, a Clinton Morrison and a Paul Butler.
The question of Mark’s ability compared to these guys should be asked.
Not his ability on the football pitch mind.
His ability to affect the Irish squad.
Of which he can affect massively.
Just maybe not in a positive way.
Or just maybe not in a positive way, yet...
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Tuesday, 16 September 2014
Friday, 12 October 2012
Same Pitch. Different Playing Fields.
Ireland.
Germany.
Aviva Stadium.
The road to World Cup qualification has begun.
And tonight’s fixture will go a long way to deciding who qualifies from Group C.
Ireland have just come off the back of qualification for their first major tournament in 10 years.
Germany have failed to qualify for a major tournament just once.
Ever.
In all 29 tournaments they've entered.
Failed just once.
At this summers European Championships, Ireland of course, failed to win a single point.
Germany won every game in a group containing Holland, Portugal and Denmark before being knocked out in the semi-finals.
Their loss to Italy ending a run of 14 straight competitive victories.
Meaning in their last qualification campaign, the Germans won 10 out of 10.
In fact, Germany can boast such an impressive qualification record that they come to Dublin having never lost a World Cup qualification game away from home.
Let me repeat myself.
Since 1932, Germany have never lost an away game during qualification for the World Cup.
Ireland’s last notable away victory came in 1987.
And it was Scotland who won it for them.
They also go into this match without their 4 most influential players of the last decade.
They will start a competitive match without one of Shay Given, Richard Dunne, Damien Duff or Robbie Keane for the first time in 13 seasons.
In fact, their squad has been so decimated with injuries and retirement that it contains only 3 players from the top half of the Premier League.
It has a grand total of 1 player from this seasons Champions League.
15 less than their counterparts.
Ireland will start the match with Sunderland’s reserve team goalkeeper.
Germany will have the second most expensive keeper of all time between the posts.
The home sides defence will be made up from Everton, Sunderland, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Toronto FC.
The away side will include players from Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal.
Midfield will pith Bolton Wanderers against Real Madrid.
Birmingham City against Bayern Munich.
And Nottingham Forest against even more Real Madrid.
In attack, one notable absentee will be a L.A. Galaxy centre forward.
No such worries on the other side with options from Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal to choose from.
The type of clubs that Germany usually pick their players from.
The type of clubs that has allowed Germany finish at least 3rd in the last 3 World Cups.
The type that has them ranked as the second best team in the world.
Second only to Spain.
The team that punished the Irish so severely when Ireland had their full strength side out.
A team that will line up tonight against a nation who are on a different playing field.
But this game doesn’t take place on a playing field.
It takes place on a pitch.
A pitch where strange things occur.
A pitch where anything can happen.
Where teams ranked 28th defeat teams ranked much higher.
Where 1 goal is all it takes.
A deflection.
An own goal.
A set-piece.
Where one team can completely dominate a game and fail to score.
The same sort of pitch that Greece prevailed on.
Same sort that saw Switzerland put 5 past Germany just a couple of months ago.
The sort that has seen Ireland defeat Italians and Dutch and English and Spanish.
Defeat Germans even.
We may not be on the same playing field tonight.
But we are on the same pitch.
It’s time to believe...
Germany.
Aviva Stadium.
The road to World Cup qualification has begun.
And tonight’s fixture will go a long way to deciding who qualifies from Group C.
Ireland have just come off the back of qualification for their first major tournament in 10 years.
Germany have failed to qualify for a major tournament just once.
Ever.
In all 29 tournaments they've entered.
Failed just once.
At this summers European Championships, Ireland of course, failed to win a single point.
Germany won every game in a group containing Holland, Portugal and Denmark before being knocked out in the semi-finals.
Their loss to Italy ending a run of 14 straight competitive victories.
Meaning in their last qualification campaign, the Germans won 10 out of 10.
In fact, Germany can boast such an impressive qualification record that they come to Dublin having never lost a World Cup qualification game away from home.
Let me repeat myself.
Since 1932, Germany have never lost an away game during qualification for the World Cup.
Ireland’s last notable away victory came in 1987.
And it was Scotland who won it for them.
They also go into this match without their 4 most influential players of the last decade.
They will start a competitive match without one of Shay Given, Richard Dunne, Damien Duff or Robbie Keane for the first time in 13 seasons.
In fact, their squad has been so decimated with injuries and retirement that it contains only 3 players from the top half of the Premier League.
It has a grand total of 1 player from this seasons Champions League.
15 less than their counterparts.
Ireland will start the match with Sunderland’s reserve team goalkeeper.
Germany will have the second most expensive keeper of all time between the posts.
The home sides defence will be made up from Everton, Sunderland, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Toronto FC.
The away side will include players from Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal.
Midfield will pith Bolton Wanderers against Real Madrid.
Birmingham City against Bayern Munich.
And Nottingham Forest against even more Real Madrid.
In attack, one notable absentee will be a L.A. Galaxy centre forward.
No such worries on the other side with options from Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal to choose from.
The type of clubs that Germany usually pick their players from.
The type of clubs that has allowed Germany finish at least 3rd in the last 3 World Cups.
The type that has them ranked as the second best team in the world.
Second only to Spain.
The team that punished the Irish so severely when Ireland had their full strength side out.
A team that will line up tonight against a nation who are on a different playing field.
But this game doesn’t take place on a playing field.
It takes place on a pitch.
A pitch where strange things occur.
A pitch where anything can happen.
Where teams ranked 28th defeat teams ranked much higher.
Where 1 goal is all it takes.
A deflection.
An own goal.
A set-piece.
Where one team can completely dominate a game and fail to score.
The same sort of pitch that Greece prevailed on.
Same sort that saw Switzerland put 5 past Germany just a couple of months ago.
The sort that has seen Ireland defeat Italians and Dutch and English and Spanish.
Defeat Germans even.
We may not be on the same playing field tonight.
But we are on the same pitch.
It’s time to believe...
Friday, 29 June 2012
Caught in a Trapp
3 games.
3 defeats.
And a goal difference of minus 8.
Pretty conclusive reading.
A dream to get to the European Championships.
A nightmare at it.
However, Ireland were in a much worse place when Giovanni Trapattoni first took over.
Embarrassing defeats like the 5-2 hammering by Cyprus meant Steve Staunton didn’t last long.
And while the FAI chased Paul Jewell to become the man to lead Ireland back to where the nation craved - a wily old Italian was having ideas of his own.
With 26 major honours to his name, ‘Il Trap’ was about to step in and lead the nation forward.
Never in our history had this nation been managed by a man so successful.
Indeed, an FA cup was all that had been won by all previous Ireland managers combined.
And after 3 campaigns in which Ireland had failed to even make the play-offs - Giovanni’s task was simple.
So too was his plan.
At least it was simple on the eye.
Make ourselves as defensively tight as possible and adopt his 'Italian' approach.
Cyprus would not be scoring 5 goals against us again anytime soon.
In fact most teams would not be scoring against us at all.
Giovanni’s system has been in place 37 years now.
It’s not the same in 2012 as it was in 1975.
It has been tinkered with plus thought about and adjusted accordingly over the years to allow for all the gradual changes that occur over what is now 5 decades that the Italian has been managing in.
It is a system that has brought him Italian titles.
German titles.
Portuguese titles.
Even every major European title that was on offer.
It was a system intended to bring qualification to a major tournament to a squad of players who so desperately craved it.
And it worked.
After 2 years in charge, the Irish came within extra time of qualifying for a World Cup.
A far cry from that night in Nicosia.
Defence was tight.
The team remained undefeated in a group that contained Italy and Bulgaria.
And a limited squad of players had come to the brink.
Failure to qualify for the fourth campaign in a row was suddenly not as ghastly as before.
This time we came close.
Very close.
The system was working.
Fast forward 2 years and with largely the same squad of players, Giovanni had masterminded his team through the play-offs and straight to the promised land.
The system, with 2 more years of adjustments and a squad well rehearsed at it - had qualified.
It wasn’t very attacking.
But it was very effective.
Ireland had gone 14 games undefeated.
Conceding only 1 goal in 12 games.
The system behind it all, of course.
Until suddenly Croatia played us.
Then Spain.
Then Italy.
And the system crashed around our feet.
4 years hard work under the highly decorated Italian had suddenly gone to waste.
And the system was to blame.
What else could it be?
What had been good enough to get us to Euro 2012 was actually not good enough to allow us compete at it.
The tight defence on which it was built had collapsed.
It was Cyprus all over again.
Ireland were leaking goals at almost every attack.
And not even threatening the oppositions goal.
Giovanni had perfected his system after managing in so many of the top league teams around.
But there in may lye his problem.
Ireland are no top side.
In fact, Ireland are a very limited side.
Whereas he could call upon Michel Platini or Lothar Matthaus or Francisco Totti in the past, he was now relying on players who were playing for Stoke City, Wolves and West Brom.
Honest, hard working professionals.
But not world players of the year as before.
The system is only as good as the sum of it parts.
And while it may be world class - the players unfortunately, are not.
The system is great if you can rely on Francisco in the final third to get you the goal.
Or Lothar running from midfield putting the opposition on the back foot.
Ireland unfortunately, are reliant on players like Keith Andrews and Kevin Doyle to do this.
The team made up of the lower half of the Premier league and beyond had found themselves able to turn over the likes of Armenia, Montenegro and Estonia in this system.
3 defeats.
And a goal difference of minus 8.
Pretty conclusive reading.
A dream to get to the European Championships.
A nightmare at it.
However, Ireland were in a much worse place when Giovanni Trapattoni first took over.
Embarrassing defeats like the 5-2 hammering by Cyprus meant Steve Staunton didn’t last long.
And while the FAI chased Paul Jewell to become the man to lead Ireland back to where the nation craved - a wily old Italian was having ideas of his own.
With 26 major honours to his name, ‘Il Trap’ was about to step in and lead the nation forward.
Never in our history had this nation been managed by a man so successful.
Indeed, an FA cup was all that had been won by all previous Ireland managers combined.
And after 3 campaigns in which Ireland had failed to even make the play-offs - Giovanni’s task was simple.
So too was his plan.
At least it was simple on the eye.
Make ourselves as defensively tight as possible and adopt his 'Italian' approach.
Cyprus would not be scoring 5 goals against us again anytime soon.
In fact most teams would not be scoring against us at all.
Giovanni’s system has been in place 37 years now.
It’s not the same in 2012 as it was in 1975.
It has been tinkered with plus thought about and adjusted accordingly over the years to allow for all the gradual changes that occur over what is now 5 decades that the Italian has been managing in.
It is a system that has brought him Italian titles.
German titles.
Portuguese titles.
Even every major European title that was on offer.
It was a system intended to bring qualification to a major tournament to a squad of players who so desperately craved it.
And it worked.
After 2 years in charge, the Irish came within extra time of qualifying for a World Cup.
A far cry from that night in Nicosia.
Defence was tight.
The team remained undefeated in a group that contained Italy and Bulgaria.
And a limited squad of players had come to the brink.
Failure to qualify for the fourth campaign in a row was suddenly not as ghastly as before.
This time we came close.
Very close.
The system was working.
Fast forward 2 years and with largely the same squad of players, Giovanni had masterminded his team through the play-offs and straight to the promised land.
The system, with 2 more years of adjustments and a squad well rehearsed at it - had qualified.
It wasn’t very attacking.
But it was very effective.
Ireland had gone 14 games undefeated.
Conceding only 1 goal in 12 games.
The system behind it all, of course.
Until suddenly Croatia played us.
Then Spain.
Then Italy.
And the system crashed around our feet.
4 years hard work under the highly decorated Italian had suddenly gone to waste.
And the system was to blame.
What else could it be?
What had been good enough to get us to Euro 2012 was actually not good enough to allow us compete at it.
The tight defence on which it was built had collapsed.
It was Cyprus all over again.
Ireland were leaking goals at almost every attack.
And not even threatening the oppositions goal.
Giovanni had perfected his system after managing in so many of the top league teams around.
But there in may lye his problem.
Ireland are no top side.
In fact, Ireland are a very limited side.
Whereas he could call upon Michel Platini or Lothar Matthaus or Francisco Totti in the past, he was now relying on players who were playing for Stoke City, Wolves and West Brom.
Honest, hard working professionals.
But not world players of the year as before.
The system is only as good as the sum of it parts.
And while it may be world class - the players unfortunately, are not.
The system is great if you can rely on Francisco in the final third to get you the goal.
Or Lothar running from midfield putting the opposition on the back foot.
Ireland unfortunately, are reliant on players like Keith Andrews and Kevin Doyle to do this.
The team made up of the lower half of the Premier league and beyond had found themselves able to turn over the likes of Armenia, Montenegro and Estonia in this system.
Something they'd struggled with before.
But when they faced real competition like both games against Russia and the 3 group games in the tournament - it was a different story.
It appeared the system had failed.
But when they faced real competition like both games against Russia and the 3 group games in the tournament - it was a different story.
It appeared the system had failed.
In some ways it had.
Not because it couldn't work against other teams.
But perhaps because the players weren't good enough to make it work...
Friday, 22 June 2012
Best Fans in the World Maybe, But Not the Best Supporters
I took a considered moment out for myself as the fields of Athenry billowed around Arena Gdansk.
After due deliberation, I too, joined in for a chorus of one of Ireland’s most renowned football anthems.
I was gutted that we had just been thumped so convincingly.
But I felt the Irish players deserved something back for all the effort they’d put in over the previous 2 seasons.
If they had of performed as inadequately as they had against the Croats - it would have been a different story.
When outclassed by superior opponents yet willing to give their all, I decided to support them.
I was there as a supporter after all.
And they needed me.
Support can change a game.
Fortress Anfield became synonymous with their successful football club due to the vociferous crowd.
Roy Keane himself spoke of the respect he had for the Liverpool atmosphere.
How intelligent they were about football, respectfully applauding when the opposition had done something worthy of ardent praise.
However, this week was also the week in which Roy questioned the expectations of the Irish support.
In an opinion subjected mainly towards the players of the Irish squad, it was the supporters who took offence.
Or at this point, I’ll switch the expression to ‘fans’.
The supporters knew what he meant.
They know enough about football and enough about what they’d seen unfold in front of them in Poland to interpret Roy correctly.
Roy was right.
Ireland weren’t good enough.
And the supporters should demand more.
In fact, they deserved more.
Roy has no problem with fans and supporters singing throughout the build-up and throughout the match itself.
He’d already gone on record as saying how great the Irish support is.
He even went as far as clarifying his comments in his column the following Sunday to avoid confusion.
Yet come kick off in the next game, the ‘fans’ of Ireland had already created a song all for the great man himself.
“F**k you Roy Keane, we’ll sing when we want”
Roy had won his potential debate with the Irish fans, without a need for retort.
4 nil down and heading for our heaviest competitive defeat in over 50 years.
“We’ll sing when we want”
Heading out of the European Championships after only 4 days?
“We’ll sing when we want”
Losing to Italy on the way to equalling the worst ever record at a European Championship?
Well, you get the picture.
If that’s all that’s needed to get the fans singing - there clearly is no requisite for expectation.
Not from the fans anyway.
The supporters, well that’s a different matter.
For them, this hurt.
And hurt badly.
10 years is a long time not to feature at a major tournament.
To come and see our dreams turn quickly to nightmares was not a singing affair.
The supporters were too crestfallen to keep the songs going.
And they were too knowing about football to join in with the “F**k yous” directed at the greatest player ever to don the green jersey.
Roy had done too much for Ireland to warrant abuse like this.
Let alone warrant abuse for a justified attack on our underachieving players.
Yet it was the fans who took exception to these home truths.
These same fans who had the audacity to hurl abuse at their captain and record goalscorer when deployed in the thankless task of chasing down the possession obsessed Spanish defence - outnumbered 5 to 1.
If they got frustrated at a player not giving 100%, behaving selfishly, even arrogantly - they could be forgiven.
But when their team is quite simply outclassed by potentially one of the most successful sides ever seen, support was the answer.
Not jeers.
Or cheers.
But encouragement to push them on.
Give them the support to chase down one more lost cause.
Force one more corner.
Score one more goal.
But no, the same fans who had just jeered Aiden McGeady to stay off the pitch after his momentum had taken him over the touchline, had turned their backs to the action to ‘do the Poznan’ by the time he had returned to play.
The Poznan, reserved only for goals by Manchester City supporters, was been exercised whilst 1 down to the Italians.
What was Mario Balotelli figuring as he watched on from the bench?
Had his beloved Italian support all wore green that day or did this Irish crowd just not ‘get’ his club’s goal celebration?
Manchester United supporters didn’t do the Poznan when 1 nil down at the Etihad.
They expected more from their team.
As did Roy.
The Irish fans had different ideas though.
They were there to party.
The atmosphere they created was unbelievable.
Build-up to every game commenced hours before any ball was kicked.
And it was world class to experience.
Unless you were a supporter.
It just made it all the more difficult knowing the only time the Aviva had sold out since it opened was against Estonia.
Not when the team needed support.
They were already 4 nil up.
No, the return leg was going to be a party.
Armenia at home was when support was needed.
But the fans weren’t there.
Slovakia didn’t sell out either.
Not even Russia could.
When the team really needed support.
It was when 4 nil up against Estonia.
When the fans could party.
And they did.
Unsure as to whether they were so jubilant for the group of players who had finally qualified after so many years of heartbreak.
Or because they’d secured the biggest two week party of the year for themselves.
The fans will remember the European Championship for the sing songs, the beers and the ‘craic’ that occurred on every night.
And who can blame them?
The supporters however, will all meet up in a few months at the Kazakhstan game.
In hope.
Eternal optimism for Ireland’s next campaign.
Their dreams may having turned to nightmares.
But in Kazakhstan, at least they’ll be able to support each other...
After due deliberation, I too, joined in for a chorus of one of Ireland’s most renowned football anthems.
I was gutted that we had just been thumped so convincingly.
But I felt the Irish players deserved something back for all the effort they’d put in over the previous 2 seasons.
If they had of performed as inadequately as they had against the Croats - it would have been a different story.
When outclassed by superior opponents yet willing to give their all, I decided to support them.
I was there as a supporter after all.
And they needed me.
Support can change a game.
Fortress Anfield became synonymous with their successful football club due to the vociferous crowd.
Roy Keane himself spoke of the respect he had for the Liverpool atmosphere.
How intelligent they were about football, respectfully applauding when the opposition had done something worthy of ardent praise.
However, this week was also the week in which Roy questioned the expectations of the Irish support.
In an opinion subjected mainly towards the players of the Irish squad, it was the supporters who took offence.
Or at this point, I’ll switch the expression to ‘fans’.
The supporters knew what he meant.
They know enough about football and enough about what they’d seen unfold in front of them in Poland to interpret Roy correctly.
Roy was right.
Ireland weren’t good enough.
And the supporters should demand more.
In fact, they deserved more.
Roy has no problem with fans and supporters singing throughout the build-up and throughout the match itself.
He’d already gone on record as saying how great the Irish support is.
He even went as far as clarifying his comments in his column the following Sunday to avoid confusion.
Yet come kick off in the next game, the ‘fans’ of Ireland had already created a song all for the great man himself.
“F**k you Roy Keane, we’ll sing when we want”
Roy had won his potential debate with the Irish fans, without a need for retort.
4 nil down and heading for our heaviest competitive defeat in over 50 years.
“We’ll sing when we want”
Heading out of the European Championships after only 4 days?
“We’ll sing when we want”
Losing to Italy on the way to equalling the worst ever record at a European Championship?
Well, you get the picture.
If that’s all that’s needed to get the fans singing - there clearly is no requisite for expectation.
Not from the fans anyway.
The supporters, well that’s a different matter.
For them, this hurt.
And hurt badly.
10 years is a long time not to feature at a major tournament.
To come and see our dreams turn quickly to nightmares was not a singing affair.
The supporters were too crestfallen to keep the songs going.
And they were too knowing about football to join in with the “F**k yous” directed at the greatest player ever to don the green jersey.
Roy had done too much for Ireland to warrant abuse like this.
Let alone warrant abuse for a justified attack on our underachieving players.
Yet it was the fans who took exception to these home truths.
These same fans who had the audacity to hurl abuse at their captain and record goalscorer when deployed in the thankless task of chasing down the possession obsessed Spanish defence - outnumbered 5 to 1.
If they got frustrated at a player not giving 100%, behaving selfishly, even arrogantly - they could be forgiven.
But when their team is quite simply outclassed by potentially one of the most successful sides ever seen, support was the answer.
Not jeers.
Or cheers.
But encouragement to push them on.
Give them the support to chase down one more lost cause.
Force one more corner.
Score one more goal.
But no, the same fans who had just jeered Aiden McGeady to stay off the pitch after his momentum had taken him over the touchline, had turned their backs to the action to ‘do the Poznan’ by the time he had returned to play.
The Poznan, reserved only for goals by Manchester City supporters, was been exercised whilst 1 down to the Italians.
What was Mario Balotelli figuring as he watched on from the bench?
Had his beloved Italian support all wore green that day or did this Irish crowd just not ‘get’ his club’s goal celebration?
Manchester United supporters didn’t do the Poznan when 1 nil down at the Etihad.
They expected more from their team.
As did Roy.
The Irish fans had different ideas though.
They were there to party.
The atmosphere they created was unbelievable.
Build-up to every game commenced hours before any ball was kicked.
And it was world class to experience.
Unless you were a supporter.
It just made it all the more difficult knowing the only time the Aviva had sold out since it opened was against Estonia.
Not when the team needed support.
They were already 4 nil up.
No, the return leg was going to be a party.
Armenia at home was when support was needed.
But the fans weren’t there.
Slovakia didn’t sell out either.
Not even Russia could.
When the team really needed support.
It was when 4 nil up against Estonia.
When the fans could party.
And they did.
Unsure as to whether they were so jubilant for the group of players who had finally qualified after so many years of heartbreak.
Or because they’d secured the biggest two week party of the year for themselves.
The fans will remember the European Championship for the sing songs, the beers and the ‘craic’ that occurred on every night.
And who can blame them?
The supporters however, will all meet up in a few months at the Kazakhstan game.
In hope.
Eternal optimism for Ireland’s next campaign.
Their dreams may having turned to nightmares.
But in Kazakhstan, at least they’ll be able to support each other...
Wednesday, 20 June 2012
Ireland Insured that it was Fully Comprehensive
The great adventure is over.
What started with a 1-0 win over Armenia almost 2 years ago - ended in defeat this week.
Not the heroic kind synonymous with Irish football over the years.
No, not at all.
No handballs from Frenchmen.
No last minute Macedonian headers.
No missed penalties.
Just defeat.
Comprehensive defeat.
The hopes and dreams of so many Irish fans were in full flow coming into the tournament.
14 games without loss.
Only 1 goal conceded in 10 games.
We had a manager who had given us a game plan.
Made us really tough to score against.
Even tougher to beat.
Oh how we had improved since the embarrassment of our last management team.
Heck, we were world beaters.
In the last 4 years we had done one on the French in Paris.
Until that ‘heroic defeat’ entered the fray again.
We had played Italy 3 times since they won the World Cup.
Masterminding 2 draws and a victory.
And the last competitive tie we played before our trip to Poland, saw us destroy Estonia in the Play-offs.
Destroy.
The belief was back.
And we were taking it to the Euros with us.
The fans sang songs.
Invaded the square.
Belief all over the stadium.
That is, until the officials kicked things off.
3 games later and Ireland had equalled the all time worst record of any team in a European Championship.
Our undefeated record was smashed with 3 straight losses.
Our defence caved in and conceded 9 goals.
Our attack replied with just the 1.
Our greatest ever goalkeeper, so long a hero, had proved culpable on more than 1 occasion.
That was more than 1 occasion in every game mind.
The leader of our defence, so masterful in Moscow, was playing desperately below his own high standards.
Our all time leading goalscorer, and Captain, had little or no impact.
The list goes on.
And on.
Each of our heros defeated.
Each so comprehensively.
Of course, effort was not an issue.
It never is with this squad.
It was just the harsh reality that this time, defeat came about because we were not good enough.
Outplayed.
Outfought.
Outclassed.
The belief that had returned to Ireland since the change in management had evaporated after just 3 minutes.
Replaced with this cold harsh reality.
The Ireland team were simply not good enough.
And unlike the heroic defeats, we now had nothing to hold on to this time.
The emptiness of being outclassed was a lot harder to stomach.
No Frenchman to direct our anger at.
No referee to curse through the next campaign.
No excuses.
Just comprehension.
That Ireland simply were not good enough...
What started with a 1-0 win over Armenia almost 2 years ago - ended in defeat this week.
Not the heroic kind synonymous with Irish football over the years.
No, not at all.
No handballs from Frenchmen.
No last minute Macedonian headers.
No missed penalties.
Just defeat.
Comprehensive defeat.
The hopes and dreams of so many Irish fans were in full flow coming into the tournament.
14 games without loss.
Only 1 goal conceded in 10 games.
We had a manager who had given us a game plan.
Made us really tough to score against.
Even tougher to beat.
Oh how we had improved since the embarrassment of our last management team.
Heck, we were world beaters.
In the last 4 years we had done one on the French in Paris.
Until that ‘heroic defeat’ entered the fray again.
We had played Italy 3 times since they won the World Cup.
Masterminding 2 draws and a victory.
And the last competitive tie we played before our trip to Poland, saw us destroy Estonia in the Play-offs.
Destroy.
The belief was back.
And we were taking it to the Euros with us.
The fans sang songs.
Invaded the square.
Belief all over the stadium.
That is, until the officials kicked things off.
3 games later and Ireland had equalled the all time worst record of any team in a European Championship.
Our undefeated record was smashed with 3 straight losses.
Our defence caved in and conceded 9 goals.
Our attack replied with just the 1.
Our greatest ever goalkeeper, so long a hero, had proved culpable on more than 1 occasion.
That was more than 1 occasion in every game mind.
The leader of our defence, so masterful in Moscow, was playing desperately below his own high standards.
Our all time leading goalscorer, and Captain, had little or no impact.
The list goes on.
And on.
Each of our heros defeated.
Each so comprehensively.
Of course, effort was not an issue.
It never is with this squad.
It was just the harsh reality that this time, defeat came about because we were not good enough.
Outplayed.
Outfought.
Outclassed.
The belief that had returned to Ireland since the change in management had evaporated after just 3 minutes.
Replaced with this cold harsh reality.
The Ireland team were simply not good enough.
And unlike the heroic defeats, we now had nothing to hold on to this time.
The emptiness of being outclassed was a lot harder to stomach.
No Frenchman to direct our anger at.
No referee to curse through the next campaign.
No excuses.
Just comprehension.
That Ireland simply were not good enough...
Thursday, 22 March 2012
Spain are not yet leagues ahead of England
A lot has been said about Athletic Bilbao’s extremely impressive win over Manchester United last week.
Defeating the current English champions both home and away led to a comprehensive score line and a place in the quarter finals.
A lesson in football and incontrovertible proof that the Spanish league is superior to the English Premier - I’m afraid not.
Firstly, it was one tie.
Not 5 seasons of dominance.
Secondly, you have to question the motives of Sir Alex Ferguson and look at the benefits of getting knocked out.
The Europa League is a great competition for the likes of Shamrock Rovers, Stoke City and Athletic Bilbao.
But it quite simply isn’t entertained by clubs the size of Manchester United, Manchester City or Tottenham Hotspur.
Especially when they are going for the league.
They all want to be sitting at the top table with Europe’s finest and if they fail to do so, see very little point in taking part in European competition.
So while Athletic did so comprehensively defeat United, you can’t help but think that Sir Alex was more concerned with his weekend trip to face Wolves.
This season has been a strange one for English clubs.
So dominant for much of the previous 5 years, they now find themselves with only 1 team remaining in the Champions League quarter finals.
Chelsea are the only side performing to a similar level that we have come to expect.
Manchester United took a calculated risk in trying to qualify from a relatively easy group.
Unfortunately for them, they got their calculations wrong.
It doesn’t make them a bad team overnight.
They took a risk and it backfired.
Had they scraped through against Basle however, they would surely be vying for what would have been their 4th final in 5 years.
Manchester City had the misfortune of being drawn in the group of death.
Roberto Mancini’s expensively assembled side is still on a building process and will no doubt be serious contenders for next seasons crown having tasted some Champions League action for the first time.
It’s worth noting however that it was Spanish side Villarreal who finished bottom of that group with 0 points.
Arsenal’s campaign finished with a thumping at the hands of AC Milan in the last 16.
They however, similar to another one of England’s Champions League stalwarts Liverpool, are undergoing a rebuilding process.
A process that the English league seems to be going through too.
This seasons results have not seen the shift in power to Spain.
But rather England’s dominance suffering a blip.
Next season should see the return of Tottenham Hotspur - a team on the up.
The two Manchester clubs will see themselves as major contenders.
And one of either Chelsea or Arsenal, who have both come through a tough season looking that bit stronger will no doubt be looking to reach the quarters at least.
Which league is stronger will not be answered by one victory by Athletic Bilbao.
But it did raise some interesting questions.
English teams, so dominant for 5 seasons now - have had a major blip.
Repeating this next season will cause much concern.
Maybe then the Spanish league will be able to stake their claim as the best in the world.
But for now - they must make do with the best side in the world.
Leagues ahead of everybody else in Europe.
Just not in the best league...
Defeating the current English champions both home and away led to a comprehensive score line and a place in the quarter finals.
A lesson in football and incontrovertible proof that the Spanish league is superior to the English Premier - I’m afraid not.
Firstly, it was one tie.
Not 5 seasons of dominance.
Secondly, you have to question the motives of Sir Alex Ferguson and look at the benefits of getting knocked out.
The Europa League is a great competition for the likes of Shamrock Rovers, Stoke City and Athletic Bilbao.
But it quite simply isn’t entertained by clubs the size of Manchester United, Manchester City or Tottenham Hotspur.
Especially when they are going for the league.
They all want to be sitting at the top table with Europe’s finest and if they fail to do so, see very little point in taking part in European competition.
So while Athletic did so comprehensively defeat United, you can’t help but think that Sir Alex was more concerned with his weekend trip to face Wolves.
This season has been a strange one for English clubs.
So dominant for much of the previous 5 years, they now find themselves with only 1 team remaining in the Champions League quarter finals.
Chelsea are the only side performing to a similar level that we have come to expect.
Manchester United took a calculated risk in trying to qualify from a relatively easy group.
Unfortunately for them, they got their calculations wrong.
It doesn’t make them a bad team overnight.
They took a risk and it backfired.
Had they scraped through against Basle however, they would surely be vying for what would have been their 4th final in 5 years.
Manchester City had the misfortune of being drawn in the group of death.
Roberto Mancini’s expensively assembled side is still on a building process and will no doubt be serious contenders for next seasons crown having tasted some Champions League action for the first time.
It’s worth noting however that it was Spanish side Villarreal who finished bottom of that group with 0 points.
Arsenal’s campaign finished with a thumping at the hands of AC Milan in the last 16.
They however, similar to another one of England’s Champions League stalwarts Liverpool, are undergoing a rebuilding process.
A process that the English league seems to be going through too.
This seasons results have not seen the shift in power to Spain.
But rather England’s dominance suffering a blip.
Next season should see the return of Tottenham Hotspur - a team on the up.
The two Manchester clubs will see themselves as major contenders.
And one of either Chelsea or Arsenal, who have both come through a tough season looking that bit stronger will no doubt be looking to reach the quarters at least.
Which league is stronger will not be answered by one victory by Athletic Bilbao.
But it did raise some interesting questions.
English teams, so dominant for 5 seasons now - have had a major blip.
Repeating this next season will cause much concern.
Maybe then the Spanish league will be able to stake their claim as the best in the world.
But for now - they must make do with the best side in the world.
Leagues ahead of everybody else in Europe.
Just not in the best league...
Monday, 5 December 2011
Irish fans should be delighted with the draw for Euro 2012 - Even if we are the worst team in the group
Being in a group like that is what it’s all about.
Every fan should embrace this opportunity our heroic team has landed.
On paper we are in the bottom seeds.
So we were going to be the worst team, no matter what group we were drawn in.
Which is great news.
We will be second favourites in every game.
A tag that sits a lot more comfortably with Ireland then the dreaded pressure that comes with being favourites.
Being the worst team also takes all the pressure off hoping to secure a ‘nice’ group.
No matter what other three teams ended up in Ireland’s group, they were all going to be better than us.
Croatia to start with - is one such team.
This opening game will be crucial and a win here will really set us up.
The Croats are quite similar to ourselves, albeit having had the better of things more recently.
But Ireland have played Croatia on numerous occasions over the last ten years in friendlies.
There has never been much between the sides.
And there won’t be again this time round.
Whoever wins this one, will certainly fancy their chances in what could effectively be a straight knock out game against the Italians.
Spain are the stand-out team in the world right now.
They are far superior to every team, let alone the worst team in the group.
Every player and every team should have the ambition of playing against the best team in the world.
A side aiming to be the first ever team to win three major tournaments in a row is the stuff of dreams.
The Spanish will be clear favourites to win the group.
1 defeat in their last 41 competitive games is a startling statistic.
Let’s hope they get two victories against Italy and Croatia.
If we can sneak a draw, with the sort of luck that England had against them in their recent victory, it will be a massive result.
But defeat should not harm our chances too much, on the premise that Spain will be looking to win all three of their games.
Then we finish with Italy.
We have played the Italians 3 times under Trap.
2 draws in the qualifying group for World Cup 2010.
And a 2-0 victory in Liege at the start of a summer.
Of all the big teams to get, Italy were certainly not the worst.
Trap will know them inside out and the fact he will play against his country of birth will add spice to the occasion as well as deflect some of the attention off the players.
This will hopefully be a straight shoot-out to qualify for the knock-out stages.
And if we are to have ambitions to win the tournament, which I think we do, then getting Spain in our group is also a massive advantage.
It of course means that we can’t play them again until the final.
And with the two teams from our group set to meet two teams from the England France group, the quarter final looks as mouth watering as it could be for an Irish fan.
Yet not a lot of pundits seem to believe Ireland have a chance of getting out of the group let alone winning the tournament.
I wonder what Roy Keane would think.
If ever anyone needed proof that the underdog can triumph, they need look no further than the European Championships.
Greece were the worst team on paper in 2004.
Denmark weren’t even in Euro ‘92 until a few weeks before the tournament started.
They too were the worse team on paper.
Both handed tough group draws as is the case with most groups throughout the history of the European Championships.
Greece were given Russia, Spain and hosts Portugal in 2004.
Denmark given England, France and hosts Sweden in 1992.
But being in the European Championships is all about playing against the best teams.
This gives us a great opportunity to play against the winners of the last two World Cups.
The current holders of the European Championships as well.
Ireland are most definitely sitting at the top table now.
It’s great being back.
Everyone in my generation remembers Houghton sticking the ball in the English net.
Bonner against the Romanians.
Houghton again in Giants stadium.
Getting Spain and Italy in our group has just handed us 2 huge opportunities to create similar historic occasions.
And all of these occasions came when we given a tough group.
‘88 and ‘90 saw us paired with England and Holland.
Throw USSR into our European Championship group and we had the two eventual finalists.
‘94 had us paired with eventual runners-up Italy along with Mexico and a Norwegian team that had lit up European qualification by finishing top of a group with the English and the Dutch.
‘02 again had us with the runners-up in the form of Germany and reigning African Nations champions Cameroon.
What this current group has done is hand us an opportunity to play against the best teams in the world and to create history again.
It took a long time for this Irish team to get back to the top table.
The players will be relishing this group.
So should we.
Even if we are the worst team in it...
Every fan should embrace this opportunity our heroic team has landed.
On paper we are in the bottom seeds.
So we were going to be the worst team, no matter what group we were drawn in.
Which is great news.
We will be second favourites in every game.
A tag that sits a lot more comfortably with Ireland then the dreaded pressure that comes with being favourites.
Being the worst team also takes all the pressure off hoping to secure a ‘nice’ group.
No matter what other three teams ended up in Ireland’s group, they were all going to be better than us.
Croatia to start with - is one such team.
This opening game will be crucial and a win here will really set us up.
The Croats are quite similar to ourselves, albeit having had the better of things more recently.
But Ireland have played Croatia on numerous occasions over the last ten years in friendlies.
There has never been much between the sides.
And there won’t be again this time round.
Whoever wins this one, will certainly fancy their chances in what could effectively be a straight knock out game against the Italians.
Spain are the stand-out team in the world right now.
They are far superior to every team, let alone the worst team in the group.
Every player and every team should have the ambition of playing against the best team in the world.
A side aiming to be the first ever team to win three major tournaments in a row is the stuff of dreams.
The Spanish will be clear favourites to win the group.
1 defeat in their last 41 competitive games is a startling statistic.
Let’s hope they get two victories against Italy and Croatia.
If we can sneak a draw, with the sort of luck that England had against them in their recent victory, it will be a massive result.
But defeat should not harm our chances too much, on the premise that Spain will be looking to win all three of their games.
Then we finish with Italy.
We have played the Italians 3 times under Trap.
2 draws in the qualifying group for World Cup 2010.
And a 2-0 victory in Liege at the start of a summer.
Of all the big teams to get, Italy were certainly not the worst.
Trap will know them inside out and the fact he will play against his country of birth will add spice to the occasion as well as deflect some of the attention off the players.
This will hopefully be a straight shoot-out to qualify for the knock-out stages.
And if we are to have ambitions to win the tournament, which I think we do, then getting Spain in our group is also a massive advantage.
It of course means that we can’t play them again until the final.
And with the two teams from our group set to meet two teams from the England France group, the quarter final looks as mouth watering as it could be for an Irish fan.
Yet not a lot of pundits seem to believe Ireland have a chance of getting out of the group let alone winning the tournament.
I wonder what Roy Keane would think.
If ever anyone needed proof that the underdog can triumph, they need look no further than the European Championships.
Greece were the worst team on paper in 2004.
Denmark weren’t even in Euro ‘92 until a few weeks before the tournament started.
They too were the worse team on paper.
Both handed tough group draws as is the case with most groups throughout the history of the European Championships.
Greece were given Russia, Spain and hosts Portugal in 2004.
Denmark given England, France and hosts Sweden in 1992.
But being in the European Championships is all about playing against the best teams.
This gives us a great opportunity to play against the winners of the last two World Cups.
The current holders of the European Championships as well.
Ireland are most definitely sitting at the top table now.
It’s great being back.
Everyone in my generation remembers Houghton sticking the ball in the English net.
Bonner against the Romanians.
Houghton again in Giants stadium.
Getting Spain and Italy in our group has just handed us 2 huge opportunities to create similar historic occasions.
And all of these occasions came when we given a tough group.
‘88 and ‘90 saw us paired with England and Holland.
Throw USSR into our European Championship group and we had the two eventual finalists.
‘94 had us paired with eventual runners-up Italy along with Mexico and a Norwegian team that had lit up European qualification by finishing top of a group with the English and the Dutch.
‘02 again had us with the runners-up in the form of Germany and reigning African Nations champions Cameroon.
What this current group has done is hand us an opportunity to play against the best teams in the world and to create history again.
It took a long time for this Irish team to get back to the top table.
The players will be relishing this group.
So should we.
Even if we are the worst team in it...
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