Mexico v Republic of Ireland - Met Life Stadium NJ - Friday, 2nd June 2017 - Friendly

[Charlie Darwin]

James McClean goes full Towk - http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer/international/james-mcclean-hits-out-at-players-missing-internationals-1.3102022
Hang on, so we already know James is finished from past threads.

Does this mean TOWK is finished too?

RIP TOWK.

[DeLorean]

I was thinking the very same about Wilson & Gibson, Danny. It makes no sense really. It would have been no harm for both of them to get minutes in America even if they were cut from final squad for Austria I think, if just to phase them back into the picture now that their club/fitness situations look a bit better than previously.

[Diggs246]

I would say its Arter to be honest

[IsMiseSean]

What's the actual KO time (Irish) for the Mexico game? Most places are saying 1am but Eirsport aren't starting their coverage until 1.30am.

[Diggs246]

Ko is defo 1am

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

I would say its Arter to be honest

http://www.the42.ie/james-mcclean-interview-ireland-mexico-3417921-May2017/

What raises my eyebrows is the statement that he's been carrying an assortment of injuries for several weeks, yet has continued to make himself available for Bournemouth right up until a meaningless game on the final day of the season

I just don't get the impression Ireland are a priority like Bournemouth is to him.

He can't/won't play through the pain barrier for us.

I assume he's available for selection for the Uruguay game? Or if he hasn't been training then he'll probably be on the bench. And as I predicted weeks ago, fit as a fiddle for Austria.

Jon Walters, too, has started what, 2 league games all year?

How could he be too tired to go to the US? He could do with the minutes over there, considering the fact he always plays 90 minutes for us - which he is scarcely accustomed to these days at club level.

Glenn Whelan going to a wedding?! Deja vu. Three years ago the Stoke lads went to Marc Wilson's brother's wedding, didn't they?

Fair play to Cyrus Christie for working on his fitness over the interim anyway. I like what O'Neill said about his professionalism.

If only everyone could follow his lead, and that of McClean and Randolph.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

*By all year, I mean 2017.

*And by "always plays 90 minutes for us", I mean competitive games - obviously.

I'd edit the last comment but when I go to the edit function on my phone it deletes the comment.

[DannyInvincible]

What's the actual KO time (Irish) for the Mexico game? Most places are saying 1am but Eirsport aren't starting their coverage until 1.30am.

I haven't heard anything other than a 1AM (Irish time) kick-off. LiveScore, for example, says kick-off is at 1AM: http://www.livescore.com/soccer/2017-06-02/

Eirsport's coverage will start at 1AM though, according to this: https://www.eirsport.ie/tv-guides

That's a bit odd surely... Will there be no pre-match discussion then? Just straight to kick-off?

[DannyInvincible]

I would say its Arter to be honest

Arter missed Bournemouth's last game of the season (https://www.transfermarkt.com/harry-arter/leistungsdatendetails/spieler/55742/saison/2016/wettbewerb/GB1/verein/989) due to an injury that had forced him off against Burnley (https://twitter.com/PremierInjuries/status/866292932114079746) in the previous game.

[DeLorean]

That's a bit odd surely... Will there be no pre-match discussion then? Just straight to kick-off?

Maybe they're just piggybacking the Premier Sports coverage, it seems they didn't secure they rights to show it until pretty late. It's probably not worth their while paying a panel for a friendly match at such an ungodly hour for Irish viewers.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

James McClean goes full Towk - http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer/international/james-mcclean-hits-out-at-players-missing-internationals-1.3102022

Haha just seen this. I'd say he's went full Robbie.

I'm pretty sure I remember Robbie Keane coming out with similar in the past.

They're both fulfilling their duty as team leader.

If you don't want to play for your country for whatever reason when you're fit and able and have two legs, there's the door for lack of a better expression.

[Closed Account]

If you don't want to play for your country for whatever reason when you're fit and able and have two legs, there's the door for lack of a better expression.
Surely this trip is an exception? Are we to throw out Westwood, McShane, O'Shea, Wilson, Ward, McGeady, Whelan, Hendrick, Brady, Arter, Gibson, Hayes, Doyle, Walters and Rooney?

[IsMiseSean]

Eirsport's coverage will start at 1AM though, according to this: https://www.eirsport.ie/tv-guides


They tweeted this yesterday https://twitter.com/eirSport/status/869547225520668673

It's changed on the Sky guide to 1.30am too.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

http://m.independent.ie/sport/soccer/international-soccer/mcclean-lays-down-law-over-ireland-noshows-35773106.html

"The Derryman did not name any culprits".

I love how virtually the entire article is about McClean and then it throws Arter under the bus in the final paragraph.

[DannyInvincible]

They tweeted this yesterday https://twitter.com/eirSport/status/869547225520668673

It's changed on the Sky guide to 1.30am too.

Hmm, wasn't aware of that.

Just checked the FAI's website and the fixture list states (http://www.fai.ie/ireland/tickets-membership/upcoming-fixtures) a kick-off time locally of 8:30PM, which would indeed be 1:30AM Irish time, right?

When and why was the kick-off time changed? Or was incorrect information spread around originally?

[Diggs246]

I would say he is talking about previous form
Missing for Georgia and Moldova = available for club next game
Missing for Wales and Iceland = available for club next game

[Diggs246]

yep 8.30pm is 1.30am our time.. strange but true

[DeLorean]

And as I predicted weeks ago, fit as a fiddle for Austria.

Can I just ask, why were you so confident that he would be fit for the Austria game? He missed an equally important game against Wales when you felt he could have given himself more of a chance to play. Why would he be so eager to recover in time for Austria but not Wales?


Jon Walters, too, has started what, 2 league games all year?

Five.

In relation to who went to America and who didn't, I think, in the main, O'Neill has made it clear that he was worried about the fitness levels of the Championship players who finished up on the 7th May, compared to those in the PL, which didn't end until the 21st May. It's not just about game time, Walters and co. would have been training with their clubs for an extra two weeks while their Championship counterparts had presumably downed tools completely.

Fair play to McClean and Randolph but everybody's situation is (or at least might be) different. Walters isn't getting any younger and he's had his injury troubles over the last year, so I would have definitely been more surprised to see him in the squad for the U.S. trip. In fact, if he got injured over there the decision for him to travel would have been mind boggling I think, especially with our lack of forward options for Austria.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Well, Bournemouth don't have any league games coming up for another three months for a start.

Fair enough re: Walters. Idk where I got the two from.

Maybe he completed two league games.

Still a minor concern when he will almost certainly be flogged over 90 minutes against Austria.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

I think the crux of what McClean is saying is that he makes himself available for every friendly and can't understand others who don't do the same.

He's a throwback and a rare skin is James.

[DannyInvincible]

I would say he is talking about previous form
Missing for Georgia and Moldova = available for club next game
Missing for Wales and Iceland = available for club next game

We've been over this already in the Arter thread.

Back in October, Roy Keane expressed absolutely no doubts over the veracity of the hamstring strain that caused Arter to miss the Georgia and Moldova games: http://www.the42.ie/harry-arter-ireland-georgia-james-mccarthy-roy-keane-3009699-Oct2016/

Irish medical staff had been in touch with Bournemouth then and were clearly satisfied that Arter wasn't fit to play.

More recently... Arter picked up an injury against West Ham on the 11th of March and missed Bournemouth's game against Swansea on the 18th of March. Our game against Wales was on the 24th of March and the game against Iceland was on Tuesday the 28th of March. Arter missed both of those games as he was undergoing a rehab programme to help him recover from the injury. Bournemouth's next game was the following Saturday (the 1st of April) against Southampton and Arter wasn't deemed fit enough to start. He was brought on as a second-half substitute. He was clearly injured as he missed the Swansea game and also tends to start every game he's fit for Bournemouth.

There's relevant info on that here: https://www.transfermarkt.com/harry-arter/leistungsdatendetails/spieler/55742/saison/2016/wettbewerb/GB1/verein/989

Also, didn't Arter play through the pain barrier against Holland before the Euros? I was pretty sure he was on an injection. Maybe someone can confirm that? He was definitely carrying an injury anyway that eventually caused him to pull up in training a few days later before the Belarus friendly. He missed the Euros due to that.

When he missed the Switzerland and Slovakia games, he had come over to Dublin and had been assessed by the FAI physio and doctor, who, along with Martin O'Neill, advised him to use the international break for recuperation: https://www.eirsport.ie/arter-disappointed-by-ireland-absence

Arter was keen to play through the pain on that occasion and expressed this to O'Neill, but both O'Neill and the doctor advised him against playing.


"Of course I had the Euros in my mind," [Arter] continued.

"That's why I wanted to be fit and available to play, but the doctor seemed pretty certain that it wouldn't help.

"I said to the boss that I could play through the injury if needs be, but he was really supportive and said that I could get myself right and have another opportunity in May.

"So now I am just going to take some rest and try to settle it down. Hopefully it won't take too long."

[DannyInvincible]

In relation to who went to America and who didn't, I think, in the main, O'Neill has made it clear that he was worried about the fitness levels of the Championship players who finished up on the 7th May, compared to those in the PL, which didn't end until the 21st May. It's not just about game time, Walters and co. would have been training with their clubs for an extra two weeks while their Championship counterparts had presumably downed tools completely.

Fair play to McClean and Randolph but everybody's situation is (or at least might be) different. Walters isn't getting any younger and he's had his injury troubles over the last year, so I would have definitely been more surprised to see him in the squad for the U.S. trip. In fact, if he got injured over there the decision for him to travel would have been mind boggling I think, especially with our lack of forward options for Austria.

I got the impression O'Neill intentionally left most of the first-team squad at home as he didn't require their services. This is supposed to be a trip for trying out peripheral and Championship-based players, no? According to Liam Mackey (http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer/roy-keane-pleased-with-james-mcclean-451000.html) anyway, O'Neill "had previously signalled that he would allow most of his Premier League and regular first-choice players an end of season break before coming into camp for the friendly against Uruguay".

My understanding is that Randolph was brought as an exception because he hasn't played much for West Ham lately and both himself and O'Neill felt he could do with game-time, whilst McClean seemed to insist that he wanted to go as he felt he could do with the game-time and was really eager to be part of the squad anyway, so they brought him along even though he wasn't in the original plans. I say he wasn't in the original plans because Roy Keane had said McClean probably wouldn't even get a game in the US and spoke about "letting him" travel rather than having asked him to travel: http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer/roy-keane-pleased-with-james-mcclean-451000.html


“James has not played loads of games over the last month or two and he feels there’s a benefit for him in going to America,” said Keane. “What he doesn’t know yet is he probably won’t get a game over there (laughs). But you’re not surprised. He’s always keen to join up. Obviously, the other players will join up when we get back from the States. But James spoke to the manager and said he’s keen to travel. And… we’re letting him (laughs).”

For anyone to be questioning the commitment and professionalism of players who haven't travelled to the US is just nonsense. Those who haven't travelled, haven't travelled because they're either injured or weren't needed/wanted and have been given time to rest after a long season.

For what it's worth, I've no idea why they brought Wes as I'm sure he could do with rest and we especially don't want him picking up an injury. Maybe he's regarded as so crucial to creating attacking openings that leaving him behind wasn't an option.

[DannyInvincible]

Interestingly, in that Examiner piece by Liam Mackey that I've quoted above, Mackey also stated:


As a training squad comprised almost entirely of Championship personnel was completing its three days’ work at Fota Island yesterday, Roy Keane said that he expects all these players will fly out to the States on Monday, along with goalkeepers Darron Randolph and Keiren Westwood.

Was there any reason given as to why Westwood wasn't brought along in the end then?

[KrisLetang]

Nestor Araujo is out for El Tri. Rafael Marquez is back after a March injury.

Big debate nationwide after the teams disappointing 2-1 loss to Croatia the other day. You might expect something like this for the massive showdown that awaits:

Javier Hernandez
Carlos Vela /Hector Herrera /Hirving Lozano
Guardado/ Marquez /Miguel Layun/ Erick Gutierrez
Moreno/ Diego Reyes
GK--Ochoa (though they have multiple choices)

[tetsujin1979]

that's more uses of "construed" and "probably" than I like to see in any post.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Former Ireland midfielder Keith Andrews believes James McClean's comments about the commitment of some footballers is a sign of his growing maturity and leadership within the international setup.



On McClean's remarks, Andrews found them "refreshing" and added that he liked them because "it shows the passion that he has" to play for Ireland regardless of the occasion.

http://www.newstalk.com/keith-andrews-on-james-mcclean-comments-and-ireland-tactics

[DannyInvincible]

Tony O'Donoghue says that kick-off will be at 1:36AM Irish time in this RTÉ report from New York: https://www.facebook.com/rtesoccer/videos/1345825398838448/ :confused:

What an odd time for a game to start, yet Tony says it so casually, as if there's nothing unusual about it whatsoever. If he's correct, I assume it's to allow TV channels to do a few minutes of build-up before hand from 1:30AM.

[DeLorean]

It's getting further and further past my bedtime :sleepy:

[DeLorean]

GAA terminology here but Wessi & McClean are going well in training...

https://www.instagram.com/p/BUxoTFulE4Z/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BUzQorUl9Jn/

[KrisLetang]

MON: I'll experiment like a college kid at Woodstock, by God.

https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2017/0601/879551-mexico-v-ireland/

PS Irish Team Members strolled through Central Park before. Sources tell me Ice Cream was in the equation.

[OMTY]

Tony O'Donoghue says that kick-off will be at 1:36AM Irish time in this RTÉ report from New York: https://www.facebook.com/rtesoccer/videos/1345825398838448/ :confused:

What an odd time for a game to start, yet Tony says it so casually, as if there's nothing unusual about it whatsoever. If he's correct, I assume it's to allow TV channels to do a few minutes of build-up before hand from 1:30AM.


A lot of baseball games throw in at 6 and 7 mins past the hour or half hour for that reason.

edit: not sure if throw in is the correct terminology re baseball. First pitch would probably be more in line.

[KrisLetang]

They just moved it up to 1:37. Joe Lapira is having his number retired in a one minute ceremony at the site of his greatest debacles. Simms....Taylor...Namath......Lapira. There won't be a dry eye in the house. Other than Stevie Wonder is singing the respective anthems.

[Park_Lane]

MON: I'll experiment like a college kid at Woodstock, by God.

https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2017/0601/879551-mexico-v-ireland/

PS Irish Team Members strolled through Central Park before. Sources tell me Ice Cream was in the equation.

Please don't mention Irish teams in America and college kids in the same sentence.

[KrisLetang]

Why was there an incident? :confused:

Looks like T Storms in the PM tomorrow. :rainbow:

I fear the worst. Humanists should not get wet, according to their charter. :usa:

[Closed Account]

Anyone else notice Ronan Curtis of Derry City is named in the squad on wikipedia?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Ireland_national_football_team#Current _squad

[Closed Account]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DBRaasiXUAATobk.png

It's attacking!

Can't figure the shape of that out at all.

Best guess:
http://i.imgur.com/Pj8j1Mn.png
but that's very attacking.

[nigel-harps1954]

Three wide players in among that midfield 5. Presumably that'll mean McClean may be playing a more central role with Horgan and Christie on either side.

[CraftyToePoke]

Hourihane / O'Dowda / Horgan in a three man middle with Murphy & McGoldrick up top with Christie & McClean on the sides of a back five ?

[DannyInvincible]

Belfast's Mick Conlan is in attendance:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DBRcIzsXsAALhog.jpg

[DeLorean]

Wing backs with a bit of a diamond?

http://www.footballuser.com/formations/2017/06/1594694_Ireland.jpg

[BonnieShels]

Belfast's Mick Conlan is in attendance:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DBRcIzsXsAALhog.jpg

Ireland's Mick Conlan there as well!

[SwanVsDalton]

All winger, no filler (hopefully).

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Really surprised that neither O'Kane or Gleeson are playing.

Hourihane is the only thing resembling a central midfielder and I thought O'Kane and Gleeson were more solid against Iceland.

Too many chiefs, not enough Indians.

[BonnieShels]

It's on Premier Sports too (aka Eir Sport 2 UK)

I have to watch NRL now while I wait. League is an awful sport.

[samhaydenjr]

So looks like a B international team, which is probably appropriate, as this is probably our only opportunity to blood players in wholesale and hope that a few of them step up enough to warrant a look for the upcoming qualifiers

[DeLorean]

Mexico's line-up: https://twitter.com/miseleccionmx/status/870434877627260928

[tricky_colour]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DBRaasiXUAATobk.png

It's attacking!

Can't figure the shape of that out at all.

Best guess:
http://i.imgur.com/Pj8j1Mn.png
but that's very attacking.

Last time we fielded such an attacking line up we lost 5-2 to Cyprus.:cool:

Should be good, glad they delayed the kick off as I would have miss it.

[tricky_colour]

The boys in green are looking rather tanned, have they been under the sun lamps?

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Dodgy by Keogh.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Superb ball by McGoldrick. Someone needs to be getting on the end of that.