Armenia V Republic of Ireland - Saturday, 4th June 2022 - 2022/23 UEFA Nations League

[nigel-harps1954]

https://mcusercontent.com/67e524e5a6ebc3f6590f643f1/images/abca942a-865b-ab0e-9e81-9c94d1008236.png

[JR89]

Squad named

1529428314468798465

[pineapple stu]

Obafemi the obvious one that jumps out there.

Is Doherty injured?

[elatedscum]

Well the U21s play two games the Fri and Mon of the June weekend. Good chance their campaign could be over before they even get to play Italy and we've only played the one game in June. You'd think then lads would be moved up to train with the seniors once qualification for the U21s is gone.

that's a really pessimistic view. it's also a pretty hard to imagine. unless sweden beat italy, we'd only need 1 point (if italy win) or 2 points if italy and sweden draw to still be in contention from those first 2 games at home. i think we're more likely to be qualified for the playoffs already and unable to catch italy than knocked out altogether (2 wins for us and italy winning against sweden and luxembourg).

[elatedscum]

Obafemi the obvious one that jumps out there.

Is Doherty injured?

Yep. Doherty missed the last few months of the season with a knee injury. Omobamidele and Idah also injured.

[pineapple stu]

Missed Ebosele in the squad actually. But he's not a forward is he?

Hamilton with a first call-up as flagged before

You wonder will more call-ups be needed? It's a normal-sized squad for an abnormally big window

[Jd2793]

Missed Ebosele in the squad actually. But he's not a forward is he?

Hamilton with a first call-up as flagged before

You wonder will more call-ups be needed? It's a normal-sized squad for an abnormally big window

kenny has mentioned before he sees him as a forward but hes easily used as a wb too. obafemi is a lovely addition, nice bit of variety in attack. pity about the cm options, really need 2 more i think. phase hourihane out and replace him + another (whoever that'll be) . never heard of this hamilton guy, kenny fancies him more than scully it seems.

[Stuttgart88]

Hamilton declared a while back. English-born, strong Irish roots. Speed merchant apparently. Good to see Obafemi and Festy called up. Hopefully no more fuss now. Connolly's absence is totally fair too.

Some serious pace available to us now.

There were one or two others I'd like to have seen but maybe U21s was a consideration.

[JR89]

Missed Ebosele in the squad actually. But he's not a forward is he?

Hamilton with a first call-up as flagged before

You wonder will more call-ups be needed? It's a normal-sized squad for an abnormally big window

Well he's technically a winger so would be lumped in with the forwards. Would class Ebosele as more a forward than a defender Think McClean has been named in different categories for a couple of squads. Think when Kenny named his U21s squad they often separated forwards as Strikers and Wingers into their own category.

Midfield looks the lightest, and if the U21s name a bigger than normal squad then Kenny could see the lads in the U21s as cover for midfield incase of injuries. Taylor and Doyle Hayes are probably the only other senior players I can think of you could have included.

[Stuttgart88]

Sykes injured?

[CSAD]

Atleast Connolly can now focus on going on the p!ss for the summer, clearly has his priorities in order.

[pineapple stu]

kenny has mentioned before he sees him as a forward but hes easily used as a wb too.
Yeah, wing-back is what I'd have thought alright.

Conor Ronan drops out, maybe not surprisingly given he didn't make the bench in March. Along with Doherty and the two keepers (Talbot/O'Leary), Jimmy Dunne is the only other player to drop out of the squad from the last time I think. Hard to have any real complaints about that squad really, though I suspect one or two may be added to it over the month.

[tetsujin1979]

Squad stats.
Very little between this squad and Scotland's IMO
1529436602572890113

[elatedscum]

Sykes injured?

Possibly. Wasn't included in the oxford squad on the final day of the season back at the end of april - but he was leaving on a free and they were no longer in contention for a playoff spot, so it's probably more likely he was left out cause of that.

he obviously recently passed a medical to sign for bristol city

[elatedscum]

Was thinking that the call to bring up Festy was a really good one. If there was an issue with Crawford and Festy, it’s better to nip it straight away, rather than allow a potential issue to develop which is damaging to us and the player

He’s too talented and too close to have any problems. He’s just posted it as a “dream come true”. Good man management from Stephen

[tommy_c12000]

I’m happy with squad. Overall, small signs of increasing quality.

I’d have Dunne ahead of Lenihan, purely due to his younger age and higher potential ceiling. Midfield is still very weak, hopefully Hourihane and Hendrick will transition out with higher quality players coming in over the next few months. Great to have Obafemi back and Ebosele in. Ronan a bit unlucky, certainly I’d have considered him ahead of Hamilton. Hopefully we will have stronger forwards to include shortly so Hogan, Keane and Robinson (who has been v poor for WBA this season) will transition out.

[Jd2793]

I’m happy with squad. Overall, small signs of increasing quality.

I’d have Dunne ahead of Lenihan, purely due to his younger age and higher potential ceiling. Midfield is still very weak, hopefully Hourihane and Hendrick will transition out with higher quality players coming in over the next few months. Great to have Obafemi back and Ebosele in. Ronan a bit unlucky, certainly I’d have considered him ahead of Hamilton. Hopefully we will have stronger forwards to include shortly so Hogan, Keane and Robinson (who has been v poor for WBA this season) will transition out.


by sounds of things hamilton is a rapid winger, ronan isnt that infairness. more of a tidy central player. hendrick has been good for kenny IMO didnt expect it mind you, kenny is pretty loyal id expect to see him continue to make squads for the next 2 years. really need a hourihane replacement though , hes been poor.

[tommy_c12000]

I just think we’ve enough pace in the wings, and lack a creative attacking midfielder. Hourihane is in his twilight. But I guess Hamilton will be left sided winger? Ebosele can play on both sides as he has done so for derby.

[CraftyToePoke]

Ronan a bit unlucky, certainly I’d have considered him ahead of Hamilton. Hopefully we will have stronger forwards to include shortly so Hogan, Keane and Robinson (who has been v poor for WBA this season) will transition out.

Ronan played 90 minutes for St Mirren on April 30th. He's listed injured in each game after that to seasons end.

So before criticising his omission, was he fit & available even ?

[Olé Olé]

Ronan played 90 minutes for St Mirren on April 30th. He's listed injured in each game after that to seasons end.

So before criticising his omission, was he fit & available even ?

Shoot first. Ask questions later.

[Razors left peg]

Very decent squad, no glaring omissions.

Coventry probably would have been called up if the 21s didnt have important games, and he may still get a call up for the later games. Midfield is the obvious weakness, Hourihane still being around shows the lack of depth. Hopefully in the next season or so we'll see more lads step forward there.

Delighted Obafemi called up to put to bed the "will he, wont he" crap.... there better be no last min injuries there.

Aaron Connolly is currently on the pi$$ on holidays somewhere. We all have the right to go on hols, but Id hope when he gets back hes straight into the gym. He has too much talent to be missing squads. I know theres talk that hes injured, but that excuse has been thrown around about him for the last few Internationals. Its a big summer for him, Im not sure theres a big market for him to even go on loan

[Trequartista20]

Is Sykes injured? If not, his failure to receive a call up seems strange given that he plays in a position where we're light on options and with the season he's had; 8 goals and 8 assists, earning himself a move to the Championship in the process.

I thought McNamara might get the call, too, with Doherty missing. He's had also had a very good season, showing himself to be a really reliable and consistent performer who can also can cover both flanks.

Otherwise, I'm mightily relieved to see Obafemi's name there and pleased to see Ebosele getting called up for the first time. They, Hamilton and Ogbene give us some serious rapid options in attack that could potentially cause any defence problems.

As others have pointed out, midfield remains a major cause of concern. Browne and Hourihane just didn't impress against Lithuania, leaving us hugely reliant on Hendrick and, especially, Cullen. Surely either or both of Coventry or Kilkenny ought to have been promoted.

[Jd2793]

Very decent squad, no glaring omissions.

Coventry probably would have been called up if the 21s didnt have important games, and he may still get a call up for the later games. Midfield is the obvious weakness, Hourihane still being around shows the lack of depth. Hopefully in the next season or so we'll see more lads step forward there.

Delighted Obafemi called up to put to bed the "will he, wont he" crap.... there better be no last min injuries there.

Aaron Connolly is currently on the pi$$ on holidays somewhere. We all have the right to go on hols, but Id hope when he gets back hes straight into the gym. He has too much talent to be missing squads. I know theres talk that hes injured, but that excuse has been thrown around about him for the last few Internationals. Its a big summer for him, Im not sure theres a big market for him to even go on loan


will be a while before we see coventry imo. dont think hes near the level yet, needs a solid season of improvement behind him. kilkenny looks miles ahead of him any time i watch the 21s. just a pity he got pushed out at b'mouth. hopefully he gets a move in the summer looks a real talent

[Jd2793]

As others have pointed out, midfield remains a major cause of concern. Browne and Hourihane just didn't impress against Lithuania, leaving us hugely reliant on Hendrick and, especially, Cullen. Surely either or both of Coventry or Kilkenny ought to have been promoted.

there would have been moaning from other quarters if either were called up at the expense of the 21s given they can still qualify. was lots of grief given to kenny when he brought up the likes of idah parrott bazunu etc at the end of the last campaign. lets see what happens with the 21s , if theyve played themselves out of qualification after 2 games i wouldnt be surprised if 1/2 are drafted in.

[Razors left peg]

will be a while before we see coventry imo. dont think hes near the level yet, needs a solid season behind him. kilkenny looks miles ahead of him any time i watch the 21s. just a pity he got pushed out at b'mouth. hopefully he gets a move in the summer looks a real talent
Coventry just put a very good season behind him at MK Dons, they loved him there. He might not be that far away.

[Trequartista20]

there would have been moaning from other quarters if either were called up at the expense of the 21s given they can still qualify. was lots of grief given to kenny when he brought up the likes of idah parrott bazunu etc at the end of the last campaign. lets see what happens with the 21s , if theyve played themselves out of qualification after 2 games i wouldnt be surprised if 1/2 are drafted in.

Sure, I get that, but of course the senior team should be always be given priority over the kids and it's not as if the under-21s don't have other quality midfielders to call on, with Hodge, Smallbone, Watson, Hodermarck, Noss, Moran etc available.

[tetsujin1979]

Armenian squad announced
1529062452926812160
Breakdown of it on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenia_national_football_team#Players
Pretty experienced, although no player is in double figures for goals. Only two strikers have been named, and one of them - Adamyan - has just won the Belgian league with Brugge
Majority are based in Armenia too

[elatedscum]

. lets see what happens with the 21s , if theyve played themselves out of qualification after 2 games i wouldnt be surprised if 1/2 are drafted in.

They won’t

[Yard of Pace]

Armenian squad announced
1529062452926812160
Breakdown of it on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenia_national_football_team#Players
Pretty experienced, although no player is in double figures for goals. Only two strikers have been named, and one of them - Adamyan - has just won the Belgian league with Brugge
Majority are based in Armenia too


VAhan from Pogon Szczecin, who came close to winning a first Ekstrakalasa in Poland is lethal if given space to shoot from the edge of the box. I know because I watched him win a number of games for Pogon, although he dropped off a bit towards the end of the season, for some reason.

He was signed with the money from selling Kacper Kowlsowski to Brighton. If he plays, the defence need to keep tight on him.
j4XxG0VTCu4

[pineapple stu]

Pretty experienced, although no player is in double figures for goals. Only two strikers have been named, and one of them - Adamyan - has just won the Belgian league with Brugge
Majority are based in Armenia too
It's interesting to see their form of late. Their last game was a 9-0 defeat in Norway. In the last 12 months, they've drawn with Liechtenstein and Iceland, and lost 6-0 to Germany and 5-0 to North Macedonia. But immediately before that, they'd drawn with Croatia in a friendly, beaten Romania in qualifying and actually gone on a 5-match winning run.

Eloratings has then midway between us and Luxembourg/Azerbaijan, but with Mkhitaryan - their record scorer - retiring in March, I think they may be a bit over-rated. I think I'd be happy enough with a repeat of Luxembourg/Azerbaijan away - a 2-0 or 3-0 win, but made to feel uncomfortable at times during it. An early settler would be nice given how we quickly seemed to get bogged down against Luxembourg away and at home against Lithuania without it.

[paul_oshea]

I've watched a few games including that draw against Lichtenstein they are toothless up front. Had they won that game they were in a very good position to get to the Euros and they'd no shot of note. They're nothing near the Armenia team we've met Before

[Jd2793]

lichtenstein are one of the worst teams in europe pretty grim if they are struggling to break them down. we should be winning that game comfortably.

[Insidetherock]

Problem with that, is when teams are so poor, they employ low blocks that Ireland find hard to break down...

We'll get more good out of the likes of Ogbene and Hamilton in the Scotland Ukraine games..

Best case scenario.. Scotland beat Ukraine in the play off.. then lose to Wales.. we play both of them while they're on a downer

[Razors left peg]

Problem with that, is when teams are so poor, they employ low blocks that Ireland find hard to break down...



Old man yells at cloud moment.... I f'ing hate this type of terminology

[Fixer82]

I don’t know what it means

[pineapple stu]

Is it that they put ten men behind the ball?

[passinginterest]

According to google;
What is a low block?
The low block is a defensive system where the players defend very deep in their own territory and restrict the space for opposition players to exploit. It is a more static form of defence, as there is not much movement compared to a team playing with high pressing intensity.

so yeah, it's the modern coaching term for defend deep with 10 men behind the ball! It's not the worst footballing term in the world.

[Kingdom]

Lads I wouldn't ask unless I was desperate but...

Does anyone have a spare ticket for the game in Yerevan? A really good friend (& colleague) of mine (and a sligo fan) is travelling over. I'd arranged to go too, and get tickets through the FAI, but other circumstances have prevailed over the past few weeks and i've not focussed on it and won't travel. I know tickets probably won't be an issue in terms of travelling capacity etc. but if anyone knows of a spare ticket going a beggin, please drop me a pm, I'd appreciate it hugely.
Thanks

[SkStu]

According to google;
What is a low block?
The low block is a defensive system where the players defend very deep in their own territory and restrict the space for opposition players to exploit. It is a more static form of defence, as there is not much movement compared to a team playing with high pressing intensity.

so yeah, it's the modern coaching term for defend deep with 10 men behind the ball! It's not the worst footballing term in the world.

basically the two banks of four a la Trap. :)

[Razors left peg]

Its fancy new coaching speak. Kenny is a nightmare for it. My other favorite new one is the midfield "pivot".

I remember years back Jack Charlton was talking about how FIFA had started using the phrase "pressing". He was very annoyed about it, said thats what I invented and we just called it putting them under pressure.

I now finally understand his anger!!!

[seanfhear]

Its fancy new coaching speak. Kenny is a nightmare for it. My other favorite new one is the midfield "pivot".

I remember years back Jack Charlton was talking about how FIFA had started using the phrase "pressing". He was very annoyed about it, said thats what I invented and we just called it putting them under pressure.

I now finally understand his anger!!!
It should have been called “ “ Jack Pressure “ “ or maybe “ “ Under the Jack “ "

[Jd2793]

Its fancy new coaching speak. Kenny is a nightmare for it. My other favorite new one is the midfield "pivot".

I remember years back Jack Charlton was talking about how FIFA had started using the phrase "pressing". He was very annoyed about it, said thats what I invented and we just called it putting them under pressure.

I now finally understand his anger!!!

pressing in this day and age is wholly different to what big jack did though. i wouldnt call that pressing at all tbh.

[Razors left peg]

pressing in this day and age is wholly different to what big jack did though. i wouldnt call that pressing at all tbh.

Is it though? I keep hearing that Ronaldo doesnt work at United because he doesnt press enough (nonsense arguement btw). Jack used to pick the likes of Tommy Coyne just so he could press from the front

[CraftyToePoke]

pressing in this day and age is wholly different to what big jack did though. i wouldnt call that pressing at all tbh.

How would you term it so ?
It was not allowing the other team time to settle, pick a pass, get in to a rhythm in possession, and force them to give it away or hit it out of play. So if it wasn't pressing, what was it ?

[SkStu]

Is it though? I keep hearing that Ronaldo doesnt work at United because he doesnt press enough (nonsense arguement btw). Jack used to pick the likes of Tommy Coyne just so he could press from the front

It wasn't pressing at all. It was a high block.

;)

[Razors left peg]

It wasn't pressing at all. It was a high block.

;)

How do I block someone on here!!!!! ;)

[Trequartista20]

Talbot and Mandriou on the standby list, but not Jack Byrne, who's injured.

https://www.irishmirror.ie/sport/soccer/soccer-news/danny-mandroiu-standby-irelands-nations-27091266

[Trequartista20]

Setting aside rights and wrongs of pretentious neologisms like 'low block', the main point stands. I do think we lack that little bit of guile and invention in our midfield and attack that you need in order to overcome teams who set up to defend deep. This was amply exposed in our laboured and plodding performance against a dreadful Lithuania side.

In the squad named by Kenny there was a conspicuous absence of any player that could in any way even loosely be described as a playmaker.

I assume Ronan, like Byrne, is injured. But I do find it strange that he failed to find room for Sykes.

[elatedscum]

Setting aside rights and wrongs of pretentious neologisms like 'low block', the main point stands. I do think we lack that little bit of guile and invention in our midfield and attack that you need in order to overcome teams who set up to defend deep. This was amply exposed in our laboured and plodding performance against a dreadful Lithuania side.

In the squad named by Kenny there was a conspicuous absence of any player that could in any way even loosely be described as a playmaker.

I assume Ronan, like Byrne, is injured. But I do find it strange that he failed to find room for Sykes.

There is a chance that Sykes is injured. He did miss out on the square for his club’s last game of the season, for whatever reason

[Trequartista20]

There could be a fitness issue but I think Karl Robinson made it pretty clear that Sykes was left out of Oxford's final game dead rubber because he was due to leave and the manager wanted to look at other options.