Wales Vs. Czech Rep 2nd June

[Noelys Guitar]

The thing that gives me hope is the fact that we do have players coming through and the squad is getting better. The Czechs today had at least 3 players who looked out of their depth. And the subs who came on offered nothing. We can beat them away. But I really believe Stan is lucky. The way we have played in most of our games we should be dead and buried in this group. But here we are with a real chance of sneaking 2nd. Its in our own hands which is almost beyond belief. I'm not sure how all the results will go but somehow we are going to get that 2nd spot.

[brine3]

IF we qualify, and it's a big if, would Ireland be the first team to qualify after losing to Cyprus?

[geysir]

Good result but still a lot of football left to play in the group :)

[paul_oshea]

eirebhoys prediction of a germany win is not going to happen, nor is a czech draw to cyprus. be realistic lads. we will do well to not lose one of those eastern bloc away games. i honestly think we have to hope for a germany draw this week against slovakia, that means all teams need to win from now on to be sure. and we have germany at home....plus they have wales who could def get a draw there, which looks more hopeful.

its not so much in our hands as in our hands + others to do us a favour.

[eirebhoy]

eirebhoys prediction of a germany win is not going to happen, nor is a czech draw to cyprus. be realistic lads.
Well realistically If we're not capable of beating Germany at home then we're not going to qualify. Realistically the Czechs will be doing well to win in Cyprus. That's my opinion.

[tricky_colour]

Still Germany 0 San Marino 0 at almost half time
Gernamy had one disallowed for offside.
San Marino almost scored when the keeper made a mistake!
Anyway German just scored 1:0

[Noelys Guitar]

San Marino should have scored after Lehmans mistake. Pity about the goal. 0-0 at HT would have been great. The Germans making the same mistakes as us. Not enough players in the box and tempo too slow.

[zenokelly]

San Marino should have scored after Lehmans mistake. Pity about the goal. 0-0 at HT would have been great. The Germans making the same mistakes as us. Not enough players in the box and tempo too slow.


Anywhere to watch it?

[co. down green]

San Marino should have scored after Lehmans mistake. Pity about the goal. 0-0 at HT would have been great. The Germans making the same mistakes as us. Not enough players in the box and tempo too slow.

As Stan said "San Marino were always going to improve as the group went on"

;);)

[Cymro]

Just got back to Swansea. Best performance for a long long time-we deserved the win. We made the Czechs look average although we still can't finish our chances which is a big worry.

Glad that Giggs went out on a relative high, I think today showed he is still an excellent player. With him, Koumas and Bellamy linking up we looked a moderately threatening side but I don't see us being a major threat to Germany in our next game because of the importance of Giggs to the side.

Time will tell whether today will be of any significance to the way we play in future or if this is just a one-off because it was Giggs's last game. I really hope it's the former but am not convinced at all unfortunately.

And if we don't play like this in at least 95% of future games the public are not going to be too happy with Toshack.

[Noelys Guitar]

Anywhere to watch it?

Its on live-footy.org

[cavan_fan]

6-0 to germany in the end, they appear to have gone a bit goal crazy with 5 in 15 mins

[Stuttgart88]

Given the fall of the iron curtain nearly 20 years ago, does all this talk of "eastern bloc" refer to the Eurovision?

[shakermaker1982]

Wales looked very decent today, I think the team wanted Giggs to go out on a high and boy did they perform. I though their back 3 defended well especially Collins. Left wing back also had a good game.

It's a good job Wales didn't turn up to Croke Park playing like that or we could have struggled....

The Czech's on the other hand looked clueless, Rosicky wasn't at the races at all - if they play like that in September we should beat them! We should have beaten them in Dublin and if we are to have a chance of qualifying we'll need to pick up 4 points in those two away games. I just hope Stan doesn't go down the 4-5-1 route and keep Doyle on the bench. Let's pair him up with Keano and go for the 3 points.

[eirebhoy]

It's a good job Wales didn't turn up to Croke Park playing like that or we could have struggled....
Just out of interest do people think the home/away thing is psychological or tactical? If it's the latter, why?

[zinedineontour]

lets hope germany can thump slovakia on wed would like to see them have won the group by the time they come to Dublin and Slovakia to be struggling when we play them in Sept.

[Claret Murph]

lets hope germany can thump slovakia on wed would like to see them have won the group by the time they come to Dublin and Slovakia to be struggling when we play them in Sept.

Yer I feel the same as you Zinedine lets hope they have nothing to play for come sept .

[carloz]

Good result for us indeed, but i still feel the result that will really cost us at the end of the qualifiers will be the Czechs at home. Cyprus away was just a nightmare alround but we could and should have beaten the Czechs at home. Typical Irish response to be happy getting the draw rather than dissapointed we didnt win

[zenokelly]

For us to qualify we need at least 1 win in September and if that comes against Slovakia the one result that I would be happy with, other than a win, is a 2 - 2 draw, in Prague, as we will have scored more away goals in head - to - head. However, I'd say we'll be doing well to score a single goal in each match with our tradition of 1-0's!

Having said that I think it will come down to the odd point at the end of the group and we cannot lose in the away matches in Sept and it could come down to a vital draw in Bratislava, so we have a sneek with 2 draws.

[Dallasirish]

If we play to our potential we can win away in september. I hope the stan does not pick a side with 2 draws in mind and hope its enough.

Cant wait for this trip in september, i think these 2 games will go along way to deciding our fate......... really wish Duff was available!

[Torn-Ado]

We won't qualify regardless of yesterdays result.

If we are to qualify we need to turn our away form on its head. The fact that we struggled against San Marino and got thumped by Cyprus tells us that we have a massive,huge,enormous task ahead against the Slovaks and Czechs. We simply don't have the leadership and mindset to do that. We have the players imo but not the kahunas.

Anyways when was the last time we beat a decent side away from home? Georgia? (San Marino,Faroes,Cyprus don't count)

[Noelys Guitar]

I can't see Stan playing for draws. The team tried to win the game at home against the Czechs right up to the final whistle. I'm sure Bruckner thought after our Cyprus debacle we were a team in decline and that his team would go on to battle the Germans alone for first place. But it hasn't worked out that way. He was agitated like I have never seen him before at yesterdays game against Wales. Christ he was only short of taking an industrial wild kick at a water bottle and getting sent to the stands! He will be under more pressure than Stan come game time. And lucky *******s like Stan tend to get to championships. Stan has the hardest of hard necks but he brought back Carsley and his team is getting better. This will work to our benefit come the end of this group. Look at Scotland and NI. Neither will qualify because they are not going to get the rub of the green this time around. The Sweden Denmark match being a case in point for NI. Heading for a certain draw which would have been great for NI and a Poulsen goes nuts for no good reason. Swedes certs to get 3-0 victory. Both lose their managers. We tried to give ours away but couldn't! And now he is going to get us to Euro 2008 by hook or crook.

[Stuttgart88]

I think if we have the moral courage to go for the wins they could come. The knives are out for the Czechs and Bruckner in particular I think.

Playing Denmark away is a good rehearsal.

We need to be bold in selection and approach, and suffer no more injuries. If both Reids are back it'll be like finding 2 new players.

I'm not making any excuses for the crap in San Marino but World Champions Italy only beat Faroes 2-1.

Deep down I don't think we'll do it but a year will have passed from the Cyprus game to the next qualifier and I honestly think Stan has learnt something about the resources at his disposal. The team has had a much better shape about it in the last few games. Stephen Hunt delivers a mean dead ball as well, something we should be looking to exploit.

I felt the Czechs were lucky to beat Cyprus at home and it felt similar to Switzerland scraping by them in our last group. I think if our luck was really in we'd have beaten the Czechs, Wales would have won yesterday or Cyprus would have equalised in the Czech Republic. But, the key thing is that we have a chance, far more than I expected a few months ago.

[Qwerty]

I'm by nature an optimist and I always hope we win. However let's not get carried away, we have done pretty much feck all so far in this group. Losing 5-2 to Cyprus and needing a last gasp winner against San Marino sobers me up.

We haven't beaten a good team away from home since Scotland in '87 ( 20 years FFS ) but we have got some excellents draws down the years.

At home we have struggled badly as well. Slovakia were poor so I don't think that unconvinving win changes the fact we haven't beaten a good team at home since that famous and fortuitous game against the Dutch in 2001.

Now we need at the very least to get draws away against the Czechs, Slovaks and Welsh and then beat the Germans at home....my optimism can't stretch that far...I actually fear the Slovakia game the most.

Added to that we have a leadership deficit on and off the pitch and Stan realy is learning as he goes and has made some major blunders. Duff is injured. We have no depth at center back. If Carsley is injured we are going to struggle in the middle, I have pretty much given up on Steven Reid.

[paul_oshea]

points mean nothing dependin on who you have played. I mean 7 points where you have beaten san marino twice and lost to germany and drawn with the czechs, is not the same as beating germany and czech away and drawing with wales at home. Its all relative so we always knew that the group was going to be fairly even around this time. But we still have it all to do. Czechs have way easier run in than us. We have 3 away games left, tricky ones at that. This was always the case even if we were 2 points ahead at the top of the group now. SO all this talk of i cant beleive we are back in it, its in our own hands etc etc. This was always going to be the case. We still need to win away from home and if we dont win one of those games away then we are not going to qualify its as simple as that. Expecting us not to win one of those games ( i mean wales last game, no excuses ) and to beat germany at home is naive at best. I will use this post for the future come end november.

If there are going to be 10 - 12k Irish supporters in september, then surely the team can play this like a home tie. Lets forget about san marino etc, this is really a chance for the team to realise this is like a home game/neutral venue and to approach the game in the same way, if they do we can get a win in one of those games. If not as usual its going to be a crap performance with hearts on sleeves for 90 minutes.

[Bungle]

If Germany have qualified by the time they come to Dublin, I'd be half hopeful we could nick a win. The Germans will want to test young players in a difficult situation against a team that are still vying for qualification. The thing is I think only a draw/victory may guarantee this which is a bit of a pain in the arse.

We are definitely due a big away victory.If we beat Slovakia in Bratislava, then thats third place for definite and we'll be third seeds for the next qualifiers which makes things look alot more positive. A draw in Prague and thats 4 points which puts us in a great position.

Heres my predicitons:

Ireland:

Slovakia 0 Ireland 0
Czech Rep 1 Ireland 1
Ireland 1 Germany 1
Ireland 2 Cyprus 0
Wales 0 Ireland 1

Total:22

Czech Republic:

San Marino 0 Czech Rep 5
Czech Rep 1 Ireland 1
Germany 1 Czech Rep 0
Czech Rep 0 Slovakia 0
Cypus 1 Czech Rep 2

Total:22

Slovakia:

Germany 2 Slovakia 0
Slovakia 0 Ireland 0
Slovakia 1 Wales 0
Slovakia 6 San Marino 0
Czech Rep 0 Slovakia 0
San Marino 0 Slovakia 4

Total:20

[Noelys Guitar]

points mean nothing dependin on who you have played. I mean 7 points where you have beaten san marino twice and lost to germany and drawn with the czechs, is not the same as beating germany and czech away and drawing with wales at home. Its all relative so we always knew that the group was going to be fairly even around this time. But we still have it all to do. Czechs have way easier run in than us. We have 3 away games left, tricky ones at that. This was always the case even if we were 2 points ahead at the top of the group now. SO all this talk of i cant beleive we are back in it, its in our own hands etc etc. This was always going to be the case. We still need to win away from home and if we dont win one of those games away then we are not going to qualify its as simple as that. Expecting us not to win one of those games ( i mean wales last game, no excuses ) and to beat germany at home is naive at best. I will use this post for the future come end november.

If there are going to be 10 - 12k Irish supporters in september, then surely the team can play this like a home tie. Lets forget about san marino etc, this is really a chance for the team to realise this is like a home game/neutral venue and to approach the game in the same way, if they do we can get a win in one of those games. If not as usual its going to be a crap performance with hearts on sleeves for 90 minutes.

I don't consider myself a you rather a we. If we win all of our next competitive games then we get 2nd place. So in our own hands.

[geysir]

I don't know about San Marino but at least we are making some shapes that we are getting better, the Czechs are showing the signs of dissolving into a disfunctioning unit. We have a decent fighting chance. If after the 2 away games we are still there then it's just a matter of beating the Germans at home to catch up those lost points.

[paul_oshea]

geysir, does 2 away draws mean "we are still there"?

Noelysguitar, fair play to you by the way.

[geysir]

geysir, does 2 away draws mean "we are still there"?
It might and it mightn't.
More likely that if we do get at least 2 away draws then we will still be there and in a better position than at present.
Still, it's a tall order.

[Cymro]

I think the ROI now have a great chance to finish second. The Czechs are mediocre these days; no idea why, but the team I saw on Saturday was nowhere near the side I saw beat the USA 3-0 in the first match of the World Cup.

Since then it's really gone downhill for them and although they'd still be most bookies' favourites to qualify along with the Germans, I wouldn't be so sure. Still I'd never write off a side with their talent.

If you lot can sort yourselves out you can qualify for these championships, as believe it or not Slovakia did not look that good against us either-the scoreline really flattered them. They scored three very good long range strikes and Paul Jones made two howlers. On another day that game coul;d well have ended in a 1-1 draw.

It's just a matter of whether your top players perform-the quality is there.

I'm still hoping we do you at the Millenium though ;)

[Stuttgart88]

I actually think we're better against better teams. Germany away had its flaws but the same level of commitment with a central midfield that's at least functional will give us a chance. Most other parts performed well.

The challenge has been thrown down. The September games will be a test of Stan's motivational skills & the players' application if nothing else. If the team is set up properly and they play like they have to win then I think we can be good enough. I think Geysir's right - there are some signs that we've turned a corner.

I think in Duff's absence the team is almost picked. I'm sure Hunt will start on the left, Kilbane & Carsley in the middle, Doyle & Keane upfront, Dunne & McShane at CB.

I'm not a fan of KK in the middle but it's what I expect. At least he won't be afarid to get stuck in and it's a good position to have one of the few leaders we have.

The only gaps are who plays RHM and how he configures the full backs. Potter has a chance in Aarhus to play himself into the team, moving KK left.

I'd actually be tempted to play Carr RHM, and Finnan and O'Shea at full back, but I'd be happy with Finnan RHM and Carr and O'Shea at full back, like in Paris. This way we can take a grip on the game and if the goals aren't coming any of the younger lads are an option, as is a shape change (which Stan seems to be understanding better). Murphy, Keogh, Stokes or Long, Stephen Ireland or Andy Reid if fit and on form can be utilised. On recent form I'm not inclined to advocate McGeady.

[SUB of the day]

Looking at it objectively, we have NO chance.If winning in Glasgow 20 years ago was our last serious scalp on the road, then wins in Bratislava Prague and Cardiff, from a team humbled in Cyprus and San Marino, are highly unlikely.Avoiding defeat to the Czechs is key to us remaining competitive in the group My predictions are, draw in Bratislava, defeat in Prague, draw with Germany, win v Cyprus, draw v Wales......19 points 3rd in group....enough to save the World Class management.:(

[RogerMilla]

i will go for draw in bratislava , defeat in prag , beat the germans cyprans and welsh

[paul_oshea]

unfortunately i see sub_of_the_days prediction as the most realistic ones, however thats not to say the czechs dont slip up as well though. However I have tickets for the euro finals, and I cant afford them so im pretty confident we will qualify.....somehow.

[RogerMilla]

paul o'shea , ireland are at 5-1 to qualify so all you need to do is find one fifth of the price of the tickets and then put that money on ireland to qualify , tickets covered

[NeilMcD]

I actually think we're better against better teams. Germany away had its flaws but the same level of commitment with a central midfield that's at least functional will give us a chance. Most other parts performed well.

The challenge has been thrown down. The September games will be a test of Stan's motivational skills & the players' application if nothing else. If the team is set up properly and they play like they have to win then I think we can be good enough. I think Geysir's right - there are some signs that we've turned a corner.

I think in Duff's absence the team is almost picked. I'm sure Hunt will start on the left, Kilbane & Carsley in the middle, Doyle & Keane upfront, Dunne & McShane at CB.

I'm not a fan of KK in the middle but it's what I expect. At least he won't be afarid to get stuck in and it's a good position to have one of the few leaders we have.

The only gaps are who plays RHM and how he configures the full backs. Potter has a chance in Aarhus to play himself into the team, moving KK left.

I'd actually be tempted to play Carr RHM, and Finnan and O'Shea at full back, but I'd be happy with Finnan RHM and Carr and O'Shea at full back, like in Paris. This way we can take a grip on the game and if the goals aren't coming any of the younger lads are an option, as is a shape change (which Stan seems to be understanding better). Murphy, Keogh, Stokes or Long, Stephen Ireland or Andy Reid if fit and on form can be utilised. On recent form I'm not inclined to advocate McGeady.



I think we should keep the back five from the games against the Welsh and the Slovaks as we kept two clean sheets. I think this is the way that Staunton may go. I think he will want to play Kilbane and Carsley and ireland and Doyle and Keane. Hunt is bold enough and

So

Given

O Shea Mc Shane Dunne Finnan

Carsley

Hunt Ireland Kilbane


Keane

Doyle


Personally I would have Andy Reid or Stephen Reid bac in there instead of Kilbane but thats not going to happen.

[Paulie]

I think that nearly despite ourselves we've crawled back into a situation whereby qualification is in our own hands. The most encouraging thing for me at the moment is the poor form of the Czechs in this group. They started very well by beating Slovakia away easily enough but that performance aside I don't think they have been very impressive. At home to Wales it took a last minute goal to beat them 2-1 after Wales missed 3 or 4 one on ones during the game and they were far from impressive in Cardiff on Saturday. They were lucky to get a draw at Lansdowne. At home to Cyprus they scraped a 1-0 win and at home to Germany they were beaten 2-1. I know that we haven't been great in the group ourselves but I'm just trying to point out that it appears this Czech team is one in decline. If we can get 4 points from the double-header, which I believe we are capable of getting, then I reckon we have a great chance of qualifying. There's still a long way to go in this group yet.

[paul_oshea]

paul o'shea , ireland are at 5-1 to qualify so all you need to do is find one fifth of the price of the tickets and then put that money on ireland to qualify , tickets covered

Who is this with? I am definately tempted. However if they dont qualify i would be doubly upset. I would rather bet against htem and lost my money and then qualify!!!!

[geysir]

Personally I would have Andy Reid or Stephen Reid bac in there instead of Kilbane but thats not going to happen.
Do you think they won't be fit enough by the time of the away games? or than Stan would go with Kilbane regardless?

I'd say he would start S Reid in the middle if he was fit.

[RogerMilla]

Who is this with? I am definately tempted. However if they dont qualify i would be doubly upset. I would rather bet against htem and lost my money and then qualify!!!!

they are 6.0 on betfair , yeah you could always bet against them but sadly the odds are poor

[shakermaker1982]

I think we should keep the back five from the games against the Welsh and the Slovaks as we kept two clean sheets. I think this is the way that Staunton may go. I think he will want to play Kilbane and Carsley and ireland and Doyle and Keane. Hunt is bold enough and

So

Given

O Shea Mc Shane Dunne Finnan

Carsley

Hunt Ireland Kilbane


Keane

Doyle


Personally I would have Andy Reid or Stephen Reid bac in there instead of Kilbane but thats not going to happen.

That is the team I think Stan will go for as well - injuries permitting. Like you I'd rather see Kilbane on the bench. If S Reid gets some game time under his belt though in August then he'd have a decent chance of contesting for a berth in MF.

[Stuttgart88]

Both Hunt & KK are terribly one footed - left - so can he play them both in that shape?

Logic would suggest a fit Steven Reid playing centre or RHS of a 3 man midfield in a 4-3-1-2, but Stan's "form" suggests anything but. His selection at RHM in a 442 in Stuttgart was a terrible choice in my opinion, one that hopefully has taught a harsh lesson..

[shakermaker1982]

Both Hunt & KK are terribly one footed - left - so can he play them both in that shape?

Logic would suggest a fit Steven Reid playing centre or RHS ofa 3 man midfield in a 4-3-1-2, but Stan's "form" suggests anything but. His selection RHM in a 442 in Stuttgart was a terrible choice in my opinion.

This is Stan we are talking about!

He might choose to play Keano upfront on his own which means losing Doyle to the bench. A travesty if you ask me. He'll then beef up the MF with Kilbane on the left, Hunt on the right with Carsley, Ireland and probably S Reid in the centre.

[NeilMcD]

Yeah I think Keane can play in the role that Stephen Ireland played against Slovakia. I would like to see Ireland in there beside him as he can pass a ball and score a goal all valuable assests from a midfileder. Hunt Carsley and Kilbane will work hard enough in the midfiled to compensate any perceived lack of work ethic ir bite from Ireland.

I agree Kilbane and Hunt are very 1 footed but I am sure that Hunt can play right side of midfield. I would rather that that Stephen Carr over there. I think its about attitude with this Irish team and the likes of Mc Shane, Doyle, Hunt Ireland and Carsley have give the usuals a bit of a shake up of late and they should be rewarded for that in my view.

[Noelys Guitar]

The only way Stan will drop Kilbane is KK not getting his game for Wigan. Darryl Murphy might be pushing for a spot as well if he continues to improve and shows it in the first month of the premiership. But I expect Stan to go with KK and Hunt if both playing and both fit.

[Ordinary Fan]

We are rubbish away under every manager.
We will be missing our only dreative player (Duff)
Our two CB's are on Yellow cards.

The swing in mood since March 28th is remarkable it migh be better if Wales had lost so we can keep our feet on the ground.

Wales have given us a chance but our home result against the Czechs will be the killer blow when the dust settles.

Sub of the day has called it about right

[Noelys Guitar]

This is Stan we are talking about!

He might choose to play Keano upfront on his own which means losing Doyle to the bench. A travesty if you ask me. He'll then beef up the MF with Kilbane on the left, Hunt on the right with Carsley, Ireland and probably S Reid in the centre.

I really hope he dosen't do that but you never know with Stan. Doyle looks like scoring in every game he plays. Very brave player. We would have a real goal threat with him and Keane up front. And that for me always trumps the 4-5-1 by keeping oppositon defenders in defence and not allowing them to settle.

[lionelhutz]

I would give Stan great credit if he put out a positive team in the two away matches in sep. A positive team would be;
Given
Finnan McShane Dunne O'Shea
S.Reid Carsley Ireland Hunt
Keane Doyle

Now i know this is highly unlikely cos he seems to be in love with Kilbane and his 7 million caps (no matter how much "experience" he has stan, he's still crap), but this would be such a refreshin change to whats happened wit previous irish managers such as charlton, mccarthy and kerr who've put out such negative teams in decisive away games

[NeilMcD]

It just goes to show are real problem position at the moment is right side of midfield.