Robbie Brady is a makeshift left back. Russell Martin is a makeshift center back and Scotland do fine. We don't have an established left back. Neither do Scotland and they do fine. Similar stories for Iceland, Wales and Belgium. You make do with what you get. Brady was an accident waiting to happen for 25 minutes during the Poland game and O'Neill had ample time to do something about it but he waited for Poland to score first before he altered anything. That's the recurring theme. Ireland only play and give O'Neill something to redeem himself when the opposition team stand off.Originally Posted by mark12345
O'Shea is an International quality CB and it's disagreeable to say otherwise. He has often been the thread holding a ramshackle Sunderland defense together. Wilson is light years ahead of Grant Hanley in quality. Back to O'Shea: I was his biggest critic in times past but he has stepped up to the plate when others (Whelan) don't. Whelan does the bare minimum to keep himself in the team and nothing more.
It's inexcusable for a team to go out with the shape Ireland had when Scotland went level under no pressure at Lansdowne. I put that down to MON. It's the basics as far as I am concerned and something Trap God love him could at least ensure - shape. A sign of laziness as far as I am concerned too to have a team go out on the pitch with that kind of complacency right after a team talk.
The problems with Walters, McClean, McGeady & Long are all related. Walters is preferred to better players and is a square peg in a round hole. He's in the team ostensibly because McClean & Long & Brady at one time or other have all been mistrusted to do the basics of tracking back and getting in the opposition's faces - which is a slap in the face to players like McClean & Long. If McClean & Long are patchy - it is because they are never trusted sufficiently enough to get a run in the team; the latter still hasn't strung two competitive appearances together.
I'm sick of McGeady to be quite frank. If Coleman was moved up the pitch, we would get more use out of him. It would remove the straitjacket and he would offer more goals, assists and crucial passes than McGeady does. But McGeady's place in the team is set in stone.
O'Neill has utterly failed to get the best out of McCarthy. He gives Hendrick a chance but Hendrick looks half the player he does at club level - he was culpable for Scotland goals in either tie.
I'm sick of people saying we don't have the strikers. We had the best striker at the ground last month and he was left on the bench for 80 minutes while two players approaching their mid-thirties huffed and puffed and failed to blow the house down. It was, in my opinion, an absolutely moronic decision to leave Long (and McClean) on the bench. Just like Poland game - no pace anywhere on the pitch.
Arry or Big Sam? Yeah that's the way to go. We'll really be certainties to qualify for the Euros and then go on to make the semi-finals of the World Cup in Russia.
We (us fans) blame the FAI all night long for the perceived mistakes they make. Then, first chance we (fans) show that we are just as bad by calling for managers who will cost telephone numbers in terms of finances and just perpetuate the same ol' same ol'.
I gaurantee the Indo will be right!
i think that's harsh....
...on the singing section.
If MON leaves, it's pointless giving the job to Keane on an interim basis. Unless of course he is seen as a serious candidate (which he shouldn't be)
The FAI will have most of July & all of August to get a new man in place and he can use the rest of the campaign to experiment. Why wait until the campaign is over?
It's all ifs & buts for the time being...
Robbie Brady is a make shift left-back. Agreed. The face that Russel Martin is a make shift center back doesn't mean anything in terms of Robbie Brady. And yes you are correct, we don't have a recognized left back and you do have to make do. But it's not working for Ireland is it? Brady was a decent choice for the position - I called for McLean to be placed there about a year ago, with Brady further forward. But even those changes wouldn't have been earth shattering for Ireland in the big scheme of things, would they?
"O'Shea is an International quality CB and it's disagreeable to say otherwise." Well let me be disagreeable all day long because he is nowhere near the standard that's required. An international CB - I am looking for Carlos Puyol, Sergio Ramos, John Terry, Pique. But we don't have any such player do we? All we have is big John who has been putting his head to every high ball and his boot to every low ball for over a decade now for Ireland. And who can forget his masterful performance against Italy at Lansdowne when they scored two goals he was wholly responsible for?
"I was his biggest critic in times past but he has stepped up to the plate when others (Whelan) don't. Whelan does the bare minimum to keep himself in the team and nothing more." Agree one hundred per cent about Whelan but O'Shea has presided over an Irish defence which is good for a goal a game home or away. How has he stepped up to the plate? At the end of the day it's not his fault really (nor Whelan's for that matter) if successive managers keep picking them.
McLean and Long being patchy? They have been patchy. McLean cannot be faulted for his commitment and clearly gives us a bit of umph when he comes on as a sub, but having been in the team for three years now (maybe less) he's beginning to be affected by the malaise they all seem to suffer under which is not being able to hold the ball and play as a team. On the subject of Long, O'Neill owes him nothing. He has had his chances in front of goal for Ireland and missed far too many to be considered reliable. Having said that I would have started him in place of Murphy against Scotland, because he does carry more of a threat.
Agree completely. Cut our losses in this campaign and start working on a long term manager who will focus on youth development. It would show some real commitment on the part of the FAI. But that of course would mean less shillings in their coffers. Now what are the chances of that happening?
Suggestions for a long term senior team manager who will focus on youth development?
Never said either were my choices but they are free & I'd doubt the FAI are going to want to pay compensation to get someone currently in a job. If it was my choice I'd go for Guus Hiddink maybe even a youngish manager like Roberto Di Matteo.
Last edited by TrapAPony; 10/07/2015 at 9:56 PM.
"We lost because we didn't win"- Ronaldo
It doesn't who the manager is - we are just not good enough ..... end of! Every time there is a Ireland game nowadays - its like a circus .... its a PR disaster - more stupid stories every day leading up to the game - we going no way in a hurry so give it to who doesn't cost a forture - the only reason the two are in it now cause it put bums on seats but this is going to change in the autumn - there's be half empty stadium!
Remy Renierse or Foppe De Haan who have both been successful with Holland U-21's, Johan Walem Belgium's current U-21 boss. I would like input in terms of an assistant from Brian Kerr, John Devine
'
It hasn't worked out under O'Neill, I wish it had off as I was sick of Trap but I thin we have even gone backwards if that was possible. He cant take criticism & has become as sarcastic as fook. O'Neill is a yesterday manager who brings nothing new to the table. Yes, In many ways we don't have the pool of players with the required quality at the moment. I think the FAI policy of Emerging talent programmes with all these so called coaches has failed to deliver full stop.
Many people I know just deleted the email from the FAI to sign up for the remaining games.
I have no idea at this point who I would bring in. Perhaps, Roy will stay on who knows but he appears to be getting over sensitive at the moment too especially with this braveheart thing.
Eamonn Sweeney
http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...-31317357.html
And we were more competitive against Germany & Czech Republic than we have been against any big team since - particularly under O'Neill. Staunton managed to wring great performances from inexperienced players like Andy Reid & Paul McShane in that time while the likes of Jeff Hendrick have failed to develop under O'Neill.Steve Staunton's much mocked spell at the helm is usually considered to be the nadir for the international team. But in fact Staunton did far better than Martin O'Neill is doing at the moment. In the 2008 European Championships qualifying campaign Ireland beat Slovakia and Wales at home and drew the away matches against both of them.
Two years later Slovakia were good enough to make it past the group stages of the World Cup finals, knocking out holders Italy on the way. They were better than the Scottish team against whom we've managed to take just one point out of six and at least as good as the Polish side sitting second in our group. For all his problems, Staunton managed to steer Ireland into third place in Group D, which would have earned us a play-off if repeated in the current competition.
Take away the 5-2 loss to Cyprus (for which there were extenuating circumstances) and the Staunton reign looks a lot healthier. Sure there was San Marino, but can anyone honestly say that Kazakhstan under Trap and Georgia under O'Neill were any less embarrassing?
Then there were rollicking friendly performances against quality teams like Sweden & Denmark.
If O'Neill deserved a 2nd campaign, Staunton certainly did too.
Cheers lad
Wasn't trying to catch you out....just find it hard to comprehend how a snr intl football manager wud be overly bothered with underage setup....maybe I am being nieve?
As for your examples De Haan and Walem I've read bits about....know nothing about the other lad....but they are U21 managers with no senior experience. ...wud they be as hands om with youth progression if they were snr managers though ?
Should add no senior International team experience
Fair point. But I don't give a jot at this stage if they have any international experience or not. I am done with the big name managers. I think at one point back ten or twelve years ago we fans were talking about the need to hire a big name manager because it is only such a person that the players would have any respect for. Well the players (with a few exceptions) have no right to demand who they want at this stage. They have shown themselves not up to the job for too long now (in reality it is not totally their own fault because they were never coached properly as kids). As far as senior managers being concerned with underage set up that's a fair point too. But that would be up to the FAI to have the new boss work as much with emerging talent as the senior internationals.
At this stage it's not about the senior players anymore. They hold nothing but broken dreams for Irish fans.
Lets compare their stats:
OVERALL
Manager P W D L F A Steve Staunton 17 6 6 5 24 19 Martin O'Neill 16 5 7 4 25 16
COMPETITIVE (minus Gibraltar & San Marino)
Manager P W D L F A Steve Staunton 9 2 4 3 8 11 Martin O'Neill 5 1 3 1 5 5
After 6 Group Matches Each
Manager P W D L F A Steve Staunton 6 3 1 2 11 8 Martin O'Neill 6 2 3 1 12 5
Posting Permissions
Quote
Bookmarks