Kevin Foley

[Charlie Darwin]

I feel kind of bad for him. He put in a series of top performances as an emergency striker and his reward might end being that he's lost his place to Elokobi.

[elroy]

I feel kind of bad for him. He put in a series of top performances as an emergency striker and his reward might end being that he's lost his place to Elokobi.

According to Merson on SSN last night, Elokobi was Wolves best player.

[Charlie Darwin]

Elokobi looked a bit dodgy for me. He might have been confusing him with Zubar on the right who had a terrific game.

[mark12345]

Looks like Trap is going to have a blank canvas to work with in the coming months. There have been so many good performances and performers among the Irish in England that we might see a few changes in the games against Wales and Macedonia.

For me Kevin Foley gets the nod at right back for two reasons (a) he'll bring a measure of much needed composure to the defence with his coollness on the ball and his placing a premium on possession football and (b) because Seamus Coleman is on fire as a right-half with Everton.

It's a bit of a statement about his character that Mick has installed him as captain when he might have gone for a more experienced player at Wolves.

Whatever chance Trap had of playing Coleman at right back, surely Seamus has now drawn attention to his own abilities at attacking rather than defending. Foley, Dunne, O'Shea/St Ledger and Clark/O'Shea as the Irish defence for the road ahead.

[kev mcq]

Looks like Trap is going to have a blank canvas to work with in the coming months. There have been so many good performances and performers among the Irish in England that we might see a few changes in the games against Wales and Macedonia.

For me Kevin Foley gets the nod at right back for two reasons (a) he'll bring a measure of much needed composure to the defence with his coollness on the ball and his placing a premium on possession football and (b) because Seamus Coleman is on fire as a right-half with Everton.

A right-half? What on earth is that?

[tetsujin1979]

According to Merson on SSN last night, Elokobi was Wolves best player.
really? he spent most of the time mentioning Elokobi trying to pronounce his name correctly!

A right-half? What on earth is that?
the opposite of a wrong half?

[irishfan86]

Considering our issues in midfield, I wouldn't be opposed to giving him a go centrally, where he often plays for Wolves. I think it's only a matter of time before he slots in somewhere for us though, too good a player to ride the pine.

[seanfhear]

Its surprising that a player of Kevins ability has played so little for Ireland. I think he deserves a chance to show what he can do for Ireland.

[Manc Irish Wolf]

Starts on Saturday ahead of Kelly according to the reports below.

Overjoyed for him if true. A Premiership regular, our most consistent player for the best part of three seasons yet bizarrely overlooked. Just reward that a dedicated, conscientious attitude eventually pays dividends. Hopefully he will carry his cool, calm and composed performances on to the international scene.

http://www.expressandstar.com/sport/wolverhampton-wanderers-fc/2011/03/23/kevin-foley-to-start-for-the-republic/

[Stuttgart88]

In fairness, he has had a vastly experienced Man United player ahead of him.

[paul_oshea]

Starts on Saturday ahead of Kelly according to the reports below.

Overjoyed for him if true. A Premiership regular, our most consistent player for the best part of three seasons yet bizarrely overlooked. Just reward that a dedicated, conscientious attitude eventually pays dividends. Hopefully he will carry his cool, calm and composed performances on to the international scene.

http://www.expressandstar.com/sport/wolverhampton-wanderers-fc/2011/03/23/kevin-foley-to-start-for-the-republic/

Im still not overly convinced of his defensive ability or capabillites perhaps. Obviously very happy for him given the fact he has been around for 5 years or so and only 3 caps. I hope he takes this chance though and cements his place, if he does we really really do have competition for places in the back four. We can then have a dunnie/oshea CB partnership, with clark and foley as attacking full backs. That prospect is mouth watering, tough luck on ledger but i think we have to pick the players playing at the highest level and who are most accomplished in the positions. I do though think this hinges on how he performs when he gets his chance.

[Manc Irish Wolf]

In fairness, he has had a vastly experienced Man United player ahead of him.

Agree with that, however not the preference of Kelly and certainly not McShane in front of him.

The Dunne/OShea Partnership is our most experienced and whereas St Ledger has formed a good partnership with Dunne, I'm surprised that this duo have not been tried out more frequently.

Only time will tell, however, I agree with Paul that a Foley - Dunne - O'Shea - Clark backline feels like our strongest to me, as long as he doesn't let the occasion get the better of him.

[Junior]

Agree with that, however not the preference of Kelly and certainly not McShane in front of him.

The Dunne/OShea Partnership is our most experienced and whereas St Ledger has formed a good partnership with Dunne, I'm surprised that this duo have not been tried out more frequently.

Only time will tell, however, I agree with Paul that a Foley - Dunne - O'Shea - Clark backline feels like our strongest to me, as long as he doesn't let the occasion get the better of him.

Thats key obviously. He was poor against Nigeria at Craven Cottage (his debut I think). Needs to hit the ground running on Saturday.

[SwanVsDalton]

Signs new four year deal with Wolves. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/14165123.stm)

Odd the article describes him as a midfielder who can also play at right back.

[Sullivinho]

He didn't quite bring his Wolves form to the last international shindig but he's certainly earned that contract. Fairly sure he made his name at right back.

[theworm2345]

Apparently playing very well in the Carling Cup today according to Gillette Soccer Special, had an assist on their first goal. Picked out Ebanks-Blake with a 40 yard pass and he did the rest.

[Carrigaline]

Started in central midfield for Wolves today. Played a horrible ball across midfield that was intercepted and let to Fulham going 2-0 up.

[Stuttgart88]

I had high hopes for Foley becoming a Stephen Finnan, a late blossoming quality full back. I'm beginning to have grave doubts now. Unless a new manager like Hodgson, O'Neill or Moyes takes hold of him I'm not sure we'll see any improvement and right now his current standard probably isn't what we need. He'll be lucky to be on the plane in May / June. He probably will be, but I'd be getting nervous if I was him.

[Irwin3]

What does it say for Stephen Hunt when Foley is playing in midfield for Wolves. If I was Hunt I'd be worried, but since he is Trap's 12th man he'll be fine.

Foley hasn't looked great since returning from injury but then again neither has anyone at Wolves looked good recently.

I think one of Foley's great attributes for getting picked in the squad is his versatility but this is also his great weakness for being anywhere near a starter for us. "Jack of trades, master of none."

[Charlie Darwin]

What does it say for Stephen Hunt when Foley is playing in midfield for Wolves.
That he doesn't play in midfield?

[the bear]

I had high hopes for Foley becoming a Stephen Finnan, a late blossoming quality full back. I'm beginning to have grave doubts now. Unless a new manager like Hodgson, O'Neill or Moyes takes hold of him I'm not sure we'll see any improvement and right now his current standard probably isn't what we need. He'll be lucky to be on the plane in May / June. He probably will be, but I'd be getting nervous if I was him.

thats been his main problem when playing for us, he's been visibly shaky everytime i've seen him play. i too thought he would be a quality full back but he seems to have regressed

[Irwin3]

That he doesn't play in midfield?

Stephen Hunt: The man with no position.

[the bear]

Stephen Hunt: The man with no position.

he usually just puts in "extra from braveheart" for position when he's filling out his CV

http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ-UC0Qa6T0FXOfNcFNDcTVggTUP-MLlof_IOhF3qUjde0B_mfI (http://www.google.ie/imgres?q=irish+man+from+braveheart&num=10&hl=en&biw=1280&bih=594&tbm=isch&tbnid=wqAj_2C4RoXGYM:&imgrefurl=http://www.randumblog.com/2011/04/prayer-lesson-crazy-irishman-in.html&docid=oUFTDz3uNfP7UM&imgurl=http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KWSYAUc2J-I/TbeJT4d94tI/AAAAAAAAAMo/fNXvQvGwLgA/s1600/Braveheart.jpg&w=285&h=208&ei=AgVVT4GuOIKX0QWqwOTjCw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=243&vpy=158&dur=781&hovh=166&hovw=228&tx=120&ty=77&sig=118049083676387857480&sqi=2&page=1&tbnh=123&tbnw=164&start=0&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0)

[Stuttgart88]

Hunt is a left sided midfielder.

[Irwin3]

Hunt is a left sided midfielder.

Thanks for that. You better let the Wolves and Irish management know that. They appear to play him out of position an awful lot so.

From his 14 PL starts this season 7 are LM, 5 are RM and 2 are CM.

[Stuttgart88]

No need to be so gruff. Plenty of wide players play "inside out", in fact it's becoming quite a trend*.

I've stated many times here that Hunt doesn't have the attributes to be a CM (imho), even if some people think so. Foley playing CM is less of a surprise because, as I've opined here before as well, a good full back will have a mix of the skills to play centrally as well as wide, because developing play is very much part of a full back's remit.

* for example:
http://www.wsc.co.uk/content/view/4975/38/

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2010/mar/24/the-question-inside-out-wingers

http://www.tomwfootball.com/2011/02/09/tactics-inside-out-full-backs-find-room-to-roam/

[the bear]

it was me saying hunt could play cm last year. i still think he'd be better than whelan in there

[Stuttgart88]

I dunno bear. He'd inject some bite and ankle-snapping vitality but put on the spot I'm not sure he has the instinctive awareness that a good midfielder has. Graham Kavanagh had it in spades, but without the athleticism. Darron Gibson has it too - don't laugh! Gibson takes the ball under pressure really well, rarely turns into trouble and is rarerely dispossessed on receiving a tough pass. I doubt Hunt would be like that. Hunt is a "head-down" footballer with a decent whipped delivery from wide. Being a "head up" player is essential for a good CM. Xabi Alonso springs to mind.

[Charlie Darwin]

We have a midfield who can't hold onto the ball. Why anybody would suggest Stephen Hunt as a solution boggles my mind.

[Irwin3]

No need to be so gruff. Plenty of wide players play "inside out", in fact it's becoming quite a trend*.

I've stated many times here that Hunt doesn't have the attributes to be a CM (imho), even if some people think so. Foley playing CM is less of a surprise because, as I've opined here before as well, a good full back will have a mix of the skills to play centrally as well as wide, because developing play is very much part of a full back's remit.

* for example:
http://www.wsc.co.uk/content/view/4975/38/

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2010/mar/24/the-question-inside-out-wingers

http://www.tomwfootball.com/2011/02/09/tactics-inside-out-full-backs-find-room-to-roam/

Gruff? You made a booboo and were called on it. Hunt is a left-footed midfielder who plays on both wings.

Yesterday was the first time Foley played CM this season. In the three previous games he started twice at RM.

Stephen Hunt last started a PL game for Wolves on 31/12/2011.

[the bear]

i'm not saying he would be a wonderful centre midfield player.

nor am i suggesting he would be the man to play there for a team whos gameplan involves holding onto the ball.

i think he would be good for us at cm in the way we play, ie. traps vision of a cm. this involves harrying and breaking up play as well as holding a shape. the shape thing is where people will tell me i'm wrong with hunt. maybe i am, but i think he would be a better option than whelan who offers pretty much nothing to the team in attack or defence and whos continual involvement bothers me.

[Charlie Darwin]

You just described Paul Green. Although I'm not sure how you propose both harrying and holding a shape.

[the bear]

i was trying to describe what trap likes in a cm, i might as well of just put up a pic of paul green.

i meant if someone comes into your position you harry them, otherwise theres not much point in being there at all

[geysir]

When the Hunt for centre midfield Q came up before I think it was Charlie who referred to his ADHD tendencies.
Ever since then, whenever I see Hunt in a game, all I seem to notice is how he wanders. On the plus side, he is also a player who can end up in the box, stealing the ball from the opposition and you wonder where did he come from, how did he get there?

[AlaskaFox]

Paul Green would be far better in CM than Hunt. Stutt's "head up" player analogy is spot on.

[the bear]

would you describe whelan, andrews and green as heads up players in the mould stuttgart described earlier? i wouldn't. my point was hunt could do what they do. keith fahey is the closest thing we to the heads up man. i would personally play him cm.

maybe green got more stick than he deserved but some of his play for us was absoloutley shocking. i can remember 1 time he failed to control a simple ball under no pressure and lost it, nearly conceding a goal in a crucial match

[Charlie Darwin]

Nobody's saying Green is a great player but there's no doubt that his instincts are those of a central player and he does a generally OK job of it. Andrews is a really good player - he definitely plays with his head up. Whelan is flaky.

[the bear]

hard to argue with that CD.

andrews is no xabi alonso but he is a very good player.

[mark12345]

Very impressed with Foley today in the first half for Wolves. Did a lot of ferrying the ball back and forth between midfield and attack. For me he's an option in the Irish middle..

[DannyInvincible]

According to Rory Houston (https://twitter.com/roryhouston/status/206817005930684416) of RTÉ.ie:


Kevin Foley made a full return to training in Italy this evening ‪#rtesoccer‬

[Irwin3]

“It’s hard to take,” he said shortly after the end of last night’s game. “I feel sort of betrayed and I said that to him [Trapattoni]. I don’t want to go into too much detail. I just feel betrayed. I have to look forward and go back to see my family and that’s it.“I wanted to prove a point [tonight] – that I was fit to play. Because from what I understood I could have trained last week, Thursday, Friday and been involved in the game.
“He said there was no rush and we will wait to train in Italy. So I felt great for two days in Italy and then all of a sudden he pulls me this morning and says: ‘you are not in the squad’ and that is hard to take.
“I have done everything I can but I was under the illusion that I’d time to train in Italy, play tonight and be in the squad.”



Absolutely gutted for Foley. He's been strung along by Trap for years now but this is the final blow I feel. Devastated for him.

[Predator]

Trap didn't win all those trophies by playing favourites.

Oh wait.

-------------
It's very unfortunate for Foley. He's been great at answering the call and after these comments you get the impression that he probably won't while Trapattoni is still in charge.

[Irwin3]

Trap didn't win all those trophies by playing favourites.

Oh wait.

-------------
It's very unfortunate for Foley. He's been great at answering the call and after these comments you get the impression that he probably won't while Trapattoni is still in charge.

Huh? Is this comment in the wrong thread?

[BonnieShels]

I find it hard to believe that Trap wouldn't have explained the reasoning behind his exclusion.

If it was me in Foley's shoes I would probably feel the same however I don't believe that by making statements as he has is in the best interests of the team.
There is every chance that he will still be in the squad as Josh is seemingly crocked.

Is Emmett Malone trying to be the new Tom Humphries? (without the same predilections)

[backstothewall]

Euro 2012: Kevin Foley feels betrayed by Giovanni Trapattoni

Kevin Foley says he feels "betrayed" by Giovanni Trapattoni's decision to leave him out of the Republic of Ireland squad for Euro 2012.

The 27-year-old defender was stunned on Tuesday after manager Trapattoni dropped him from the 23 despite naming him in the squad three weeks ago.

"It is hard to take. I don't want to go into too much detail. I just feel betrayed," said the Wolves defender. Trapattoni included Paul McShane in his squad instead of Foley.
McShane had been on stand-by before being drafted into the party as defensive cover last week.

Wolves full-back Foley spent the last week or so working his way back to fitness after a hamstring problem but he insisted that he is now fully fit and played in Tuesday's 5-0 friendly win over a Tuscan Select.

However, Trapattoni decided that injury concerns over John O'Shea and Darren O'Dea made McShane a better option as he can play at both right-back and in central defence.

"I wanted to prove a point, that I was fit to play because from what I understood, I could have trained last week, Thursday, Friday and been involved in the game [against Bosnia on Saturday]," said Foley.

"He [Trapattoni] said there was no rush and we will wait to train in Italy, so I trained for two days in Italy and felt great.

"And then all of a sudden, he pulls me this morning [Tuesday] just before the end and says, 'You are not in the squad', and that is hard to take.

"I have done everything I can. That is all I can do. Words can't really describe it. It was tough.

"The lads have been great, but what happened happened, there's nothing I can do about it now.

"I hope the lads go on and do as well as they can from the tournament."

Trapattoni said after Tuesday's friendly that the decision to exclude Foley had been an intensely difficult one. The Republic boss invited the player to remain with the squad, which heads for Hungary on Sunday and then Poland two days later but Foley has declined the offer.

"I go home tomorrow. I don't want to talk about that."

Hard not to feel for him

[kennedmc]

Absolutely gutted for Foley. He's been strung along by Trap for years now but this is the final blow I feel. Devastated for him.

How has he been strung along for years by Trap? By being picked in Irish squads and playing for his country?

It is disappointing and unlucky for Foley but Trap has done it to bring in CB cover. Simple.

[tetsujin1979]

He's been in loads of squads, without seeing much game time and I can't recall him ever complaining about it, like Joey O'Brien. With Kelly already in the squad as specialist cover at right full, he's unfortunately surplus to requirements, and, as has been pointed out, McShane can cover two positions that we need cover in, with O'Shea still not 100% and Dunne only just back from injury.

Not to tempt fate, but if O'Shea did have to pull out before the tournament starts, would he be brought back into the squad?

[Murfinator]

He's been in loads of squads, without seeing much game time and I can't recall him ever complaining about it

This should never be something to praise a player about, it should be the expectation of everyone. I think Foley has been mistreated here by the very fact the original squad announcement was made as final, it should have been extended if trap wasn't 100% happy with the balance in it. But in the end Trap made the right decision for the squad, which happened to the be the hard decision. He's put himself in that position and must deal with the consequences of upsetting a player but I'm pleased to see he didn't shy away from what was in the best interests of the team.

[mark12345]

as has been pointed out, McShane can cover two positions that we need cover in, with O'Shea still not 100% and Dunne only just back from injury.

Is this the same McShane who's been moved on from United to Sunderland to Brighton to West Brom to Hull City, and has not figured in the campaign for the Euros. McShane is one of the worst defenders we have ever produced. Foley on the other hand has bags more ability, even if he has to cover in the middle. Ridiculous decision by Trap - just to think we have a squad with Paul Green and Paul McShane in it. Let us pray to Saint Paul for salvation.

[Irwin3]

How has he been strung along for years by Trap? By being picked in Irish squads and playing for his country?

It is disappointing and unlucky for Foley but Trap has done it to bring in CB cover. Simple.

By turning up to every squad that he was picked for which is the majority of Trap's squads. And then by starting an enormous 5 matches out of Trap's 44 when he has watched the likes of McShane and Kelly start 15 and 16 times even when the former has become a Championship journeyman and the latter was and probably would still have been a reserve at club level if not for an injury to his rival this season.

Plus there was the infamous 'Kelly is taller' line when it looked like Foley was nailed on to start a big game.

If you disagree then great.

If a CB isn't fit then he shouldn't be brought. Even if it is JOS. Trap had several options by the way. He could have kept the original squad and if JOS or whoever was injured then he could have brought McShane in by the 10th. Or he could have brought 8 defenders in the first place like many people said he should have done. The only way that McShane is CB cover is if 4 out of Dunne, St. Ledger, O'Dea, O'Shea and Kelly are injured/suspended at the same time.

He also said he didn't want to name a 26-man panel or whatever to avoid disappointing people. What he's done here is far worse. He's led a player to understand that he will be in the squad for weeks IF he gets himself fit. Said player has got himself fit and has family/friends with their tickets booked. Then at the 11th hour the player is told 'you're fit, great but we're bringing MCShane in to cover the potentially injured CB's' WTF.

I see it as a case of stringing along and it's extremely unfortunate that it happened to the player who I think has been in my opinion let down a bit over the years by Trap.