Stephen Ireland

[irishultra]

Yep. Very underrated player(by non-Irish people)

[Wexford Delboy]

instrumental today jus shows the creativity that ireland are missing out on

[irishfan86]

Watch this game and tell me he's not worth the complexities of bringing him back.

[gustavo]

Watch this game and tell me he's not worth the complexities of bringing him back.

Its himself that doesnt want to come back ,I'd rather have someone of more limited ability that actually wants to play for us

[irishultra]

I'm not convinced Ireland would get into our starting 11 with Trap in charge. He certainly wouldn't get in the centre of midfield where he works best.

I'm a fan though, would love to have him back.

Having said that I get the opinion Trap would love to have him as the man off the forward should he play the 4-4-1-1 formation.

[eirebhoy]

He was man of the match today I think? I switched it off straight after but he got the 3 bonus points in the Fantasy football. Really good performance. He should run with the ball more though since he's playing on the wing.

[Emmet]

Watch this game and tell me he's not worth the complexities of bringing him back.

By that do you mean changing his nationality to a country he's prepared to play for?

[kingdomkerry]

Stephen Ireland = Gob****e!

[Reality Bites]

Stephen Ireland = Gob****e!

Ya but I don't think too many of the current Irish Squad would be capable of the first touch in mid-air and turn and pass to create goal we saw Ireland do with ease on Sunday!

[musicinmouth]

kingdomkerry, you seem to love calling him names... you don't know him, what problems he may be having or his reasons for not playing with Ireland at the moment... he has not retired from international football, he needs a break and we don't know the reasons why... it's sad that you can't imagine any circumstances which might cause someone to take a break from something... give him a break... you have no idea what he's going through...

[youngirish]

Yes bring Stephen Ireland back as quickly as possible. He's brilliant again because after about 15 games of average performances and the subsequent loss of his starting place under the new manager he has one good game against a very poor West Ham team. Yes that's right one single decent game against a terrible team.

I would like to point out that he was also marked by Lucas Neill who has been sh*t for West Ham but don't let that put a dampener on things. Who needs a realistic assessment of his performance?

Now Trapatonni get down on your knees and beg the great Stephen Ireland to forgive you, the Irish players and the fans for ever doubting him until he comes back. He's that good.

I see the goldfish brigade are still out in force. Again I reiterate he'll be nothing more than a peripheral starter for City over the course of the season.

[Reality Bites]

Yes bring Stephen Ireland back as quickly as possible. He's brilliant again because after about 15 games of average performances and the subsequent loss of his starting place under the new manager he has one good game against a very poor West Ham team. Yes that's right one single decent game against a terrible team.

I would like to point out that he was also been marked by Lucas Neill who has been sh*t for West Ham but don't let that put a dampener on things. Who needs a realistic assessment of his performance?

Now Trapatonni get down on your knees and beg the great Stephen Ireland to forgive you, the Irish players and the fans for ever doubting him until he comes back. He's that good.

I see the goldfish brigade are still out in force. Again I reiterate he'll be nothing more than a peripheral starter for City over the course of the season.

Boulderdash!

[youngirish]

Boulderdash!

We'll see by the end of the season. I'm putting you into my little black book now :

R-E-A-L-I-T-Y-B-I-T-E-S.

I'll be back in May.

[Reality Bites]

We'll see by the end of the season. I'm putting you into my little black book now :

R-E-A-L-I-T-Y-B-I-T-E-S.

I'll be back in May.

In May I suggest you sharpen your Kitchen Knife cause Brother you are going to be eating a large slice of Humble pie!

[Wheels]

For me, Duff hasn't been the threat he used to be for years. On current form, Ireland is a better winger than him... Last year Ireland was useless on the wing. He seems to have added to his game again.

Anyone who throws around insults loses any respect for me, so I won't even dignify them with a reply.

I hope Ireland gets his confidence/happiness/hunger back soon and rejoins the fun on the International stage.

[Greenforever]

Anyone who throws around insults loses any respect for me, so I won't even dignify them with a reply.

I hope Ireland gets his confidence/happiness/hunger back soon and rejoins the fun on the International stage.


And is lieing to your manager, teammates, and having the FAI pay for a private jet to get home as a result of those lies not insulting?? It certainly is to me, and while a genuine apology would have been acceptable, the lies continue.

He has refused to play for 4 Irish Managers, Kerr, Staunton, Givens and Trapattoni. That must be a record.

[musicinmouth]

...and while a genuine apology would have been acceptable, the lies continue.

He did make a genuine apology! Maybe you missed it at the time - here it is (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2007/0915/1189076437750.html). I presume everything is "acceptable" now.

And what lies continue exactly??

[geysir]

His epitaph from the same speech (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2007/0915/1189076437750.html)

"I love playing for my country"

[Greenforever]

He did make a genuine apology! Maybe you missed it at the time - here it is (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2007/0915/1189076437750.html). I presume everything is "acceptable" now.

And what lies continue exactly??

You may thing a statement issued through a pr company is acceptable, I don't.

Lies may be harsh, but bottom line he has no interest in playing for his country and his refusal to play for 4 different managers proves it.

[musicinmouth]

You have no idea why he's not playing for Ireland right now. He is entitled to take a break to work through his problems, that doesn't mean he doesn't want to play for his country. I think it's a disgrace the way he is treated on this forum. He will be back to play for us when he is able to. Give a young guy a break.

[And Don Givens didn't call him up, so he didn't refuse to play for him.]

[FarBeag]

You have no idea why he's not playing for Ireland right now. He is entitled to take a break to work through his problems, that doesn't mean he doesn't want to play for his country. I think it's a disgrace the way he is treated on this forum. He will be back to play for us when he is able to. Give a young guy a break.

[And Don Givens didn't call him up, so he didn't refuse to play for him.]

He is not playing for his country because he doesn’t want to, simple as. One of the reason's I can think of for this is he was slagged off by some of his team mates about that thatch he had stuck to his head and could not take it.The other reason is that he just cant be bothered.

You say he has problems.What sort of problem's does he have besides the obvious? Do you know something about him that most of us dont?If you do spit it out.There must be some reason you are defending his actions.You think its a disgrace the way he is treated on this forum.I think its a disgrace the way he is treating the privilege to play for his country.:mad:

[theworm2345]

Ireland could learn a thing or two from Jamal Campbell-Ryce
http://www.thereggaeboyz.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=106508&page=0#Post106508

[drummerboy]

The day that little turd plays for Ireland is the day I stop attending matches.

[Reality Bites]

The day that little turd plays for Ireland is the day I stop attending matches.

Good man fair play to you

[musicinmouth]

The day that little turd plays for Ireland is the day I stop attending matches.

Good man fair play to you

Yeah, fair play - that's a great way to support your team. I think we would be much better off without fans like you. I'm surprised you haven't shown your loyalty to the team by not attending games after other players came back from breaks, such as Roy Keane, Lee Carsley, Steve Finnan, etc.


He is not playing for his country because he doesn’t want to, simple as. One of the reason's I can think of for this is he was slagged off by some of his team mates about that thatch he had stuck to his head and could not take it.The other reason is that he just cant be bothered.

You say he has problems.What sort of problem's does he have besides the obvious? Do you know something about him that most of us dont?If you do spit it out.There must be some reason you are defending his actions.You think its a disgrace the way he is treated on this forum.I think its a disgrace the way he is treating the privilege to play for his country.:mad:

No, I have no inside information. I think people deserve a second chance, especially when you don't know the full reasons behind their decisions. You can believe tabloid gossip - that he was upset because people made fun of his hair - but I think that's a pretty lazy way to assess the situation. The original mistake (leaving after the Slovakia game) was caused by his girlfriend having a miscarriage - they obviously went through a very hard time. He is a young guy who clearly has some problems that we know nothing about. I think it's sad that Irish fans can't wish him good luck and hope that he returns to the team soon.

It's ridiculous to say he just "can't be bothered", when you have no idea why he is taking a break. He has always said that he loves to play for his country and when he has played for us, he has played with pride and skill and scored goals. He deserves respect and compassion.

[drummerboy]

Ireland has had several chances to come back and hasn't. No proper explanation for not returning has been offered. If he has problems it certainly hasn't affected him appearing for Man City. I don't see the difference. I presume he wants the option to declare for us again if we are close to qualifying for WC Finals.

[youngirish]

good luck and hope that he returns to the team soon.

It's ridiculous to say he just "can't be bothered", when you have no idea why he is taking a break. He has always said that he loves to play for his country and when he has played for us, he has played with pride and skill and scored goals. He deserves respect and compassion.
Are you for real? Grow up ffs. If he claimed the sun shined out of his arse would you believe that also? Actions are what count not meaningless words that bear no relevance to the facts we are presented with i.e if he loves playing for his country so much where has he been for the past year and half a dozen games?

He played for his country and scored a few goals I'll agree. But I don't see how you came to the baffling conclusion that he played with any particular pride that may have been lacking in other players. As far as I'm concerned he turned up, scored a couple of goals but did absolutely nothing in the remainder of the games he played. This if anything shows a distinct absence of pride when compared with someone like Kilbane or even Keane who run their hearts out for the full 90 minutes like their lives depended on it. That's pride, not tapping the ball in on the 4th minute and going missing for the remaining 86 minutes of the game.

He deserves no respect or compassion. He's a highly paid professional footballer who lied about why he's not turned up for his country in the past and who drives a pink landrover. I suppose in your eyes Hitler was just a misunderstood, lonely ,war veteran with a host of problems stemming from an abusive alcoholic father in his childhood and who's reasons for initiating the Final Solution and exterminating the Jewish people of Europe will never be fully known to us and thus we shouldn't judge him to harshly. Use your brain. I'll save my compassion for the kids starving in East Africa thank you very much.

[musicinmouth]

Are you for real? Group up ffs. If he claimed the sun shined out of his arse woudl you believe that also? Actions are what count not meaningless words that bear no relevance to the facts we are presented with i.e if he loves playing for his country so much where has he been for the last year?

He played for his country and scored a few goals I'll agree. But I don't see how you came to the baffling conclusion that he played with any particular pride that may have been lacking in other players. As far as I'm concerned he turned up, scored a couple of goals but did absolutely nothing in the remainder of the games he played. This if anything shows a distinct absence of pride when compared with someone like Kilbane or even Keane who run their hearts out for the full 90 minutes like their lives depended on it. That's pride, not tapping the ball in on in the 4th minute and going missing for the remaining 86 minutes of the game.

He deserves no respect or compassion. He's a highly paid professional footballer who lied about why he's not turned up for his country in the past and who drives a pink landroever. I'll save my compassion for the kids starving in East Africa thank you very much.

Oh, so now all of a sudden facts matter... Your earlier argument was based on assumptions and tabloid gossip... The simple fact is that you don't know why he is taking a break from international football. You have no clue. Neither do I. Neither does anyone.

Yes he made a mistake once, at a time of bereavement. And he apologised for it. I guess you have never made any mistake. Or maybe you believe that we should never allow anyone any second chances.

Do you feel that Steve Finnan is a traitor too? He took a break from international football and you know exactly as much about his reasons for doing so as you do about Ireland's. Then he fell out of favour at Liverpool and now he's back... so I presume some of you will stop attending Irish games now and burn your shirts, etc... Get a life!

If you seriously want to talk facts, then look at his goals to appearances record... He did play with pride and skill, maybe he wasn't always great... but none of the Irish team were in all those games. Not even Keane or Kilbane. At least he got us goals.

I'm not sure why it bothers you that he makes a lot of money or here's a weird sense of fashion... but maybe those are disqualifying factors in your eyes...

[tetsujin1979]

Take it outside, boys

[eirebhoy]

As far as I'm concerned he turned up, scored a couple of goals but did absolutely nothing in the remainder of the games he played.
He didn't score against Slovakia at Croker but put in a very good performance.

[bellavistaman]

Showed the other day the boy is different class.

[youngirish]

He didn't score against Slovakia at Croker but put in a very good performance.

C'mon Eirebhoy are you serious or did you just throw out a game he played in where Ireland (the Republic not the player) had a good overall performance and credit it to him? I don't remember him being good in the slightest against Slovakia at Croker. He was a passenger most of the way through the first half and was replaced by Hunt early into the second half who was much more effective. Not sure which match you were watching but it wasn't the same one I was at.

Doyle, Duff, Long and Hunt were our most effective attacking players that day.

[Reality Bites]

C'mon Eirebhoy are you serious or did you just throw out a game he played in where Ireland (the Republic not the player) had a good overall performance and credit it to him? I don't remember him being good in the slightest against Slovakia at Croker. He was a passenger most of the way through the first half and was replaced by Hunt early into the second half who was much more effective. Not sure which match you were watching but it wasn't the same one I was at.

Doyle, Duff, Long and Hunt were our most effective attacking players that day.

He gave a Masterclass in Croker against Slovakia, a few touches and passes were sublime

[eirebhoy]

C'mon Eirebhoy are you serious or did you just throw out a game he played in where Ireland (the Republic not the player) had a good overall performance and credit it to him? I don't remember him being good in the slightest against Slovakia at Croker. He was a passenger most of the way through the first half and was replaced by Hunt early into the second half who was much more effective. Not sure which match you were watching but it wasn't the same one I was at.

This debate just reminds me of the many debates I had with people about Nakamura. If you're trying to watch 11/22 players equally it's hard to really judge a player like S.Ireland and Naka. I certainly couldn't. tets is a Man City fan who would know what Ireland's game was about and would subconsciously be watching Ireland more than most. He said after the Slovakia game:
"Stephen Ireland was excellent, Vittek was stuck to him whenever Ireland had possession, otherwise he would have been all over them."

And Naka, the guy 90% of people thought hid in games against Rangers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=at7EVwGCuZA

Any excuse to post a video of him sorry. ;) Ireland is a pretty similar in that his game is all about simple passes and I'm sure he's currently better than Naka was at 22.

[bennocelt]

This debate just reminds me of the many debates I had with people about Nakamura. If you're trying to watch 11/22 players equally it's hard to really judge a player like S.Ireland and Naka. I certainly couldn't. tets is a Man City fan who would know what Ireland's game was about and would subconsciously be watching Ireland more than most. He said after the Slovakia game:
"Stephen Ireland was excellent, Vittek was stuck to him whenever Ireland had possession, otherwise he would have been all over them."

And Naka, the guy 90% of people thought hid in games against Rangers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=at7EVwGCuZA

Any excuse to post a video of him sorry. ;) Ireland is a pretty similar in that his game is all about simple passes and I'm sure he's currently better than Naka was at 22.

the two of them are pretty much overrated IMHO
A Stokes was top scorer in the SPL for a while, so that tells you the level of football in scotland
S Ireland will never make the next level

[Brendan 82]

S Ireland will never make the next level

What is the next level above playing regularly and well in the Premiership?

EDIT: Okay the Champs League I guess. But if we insisted that players be at that level we might have a squad of about three players.

[gustavo]

What is the next level above playing regularly and well in the Premiership?

Presumably playing regularly and well in European competiton and title challenging teams

[eirebhoy]

the two of them are pretty much overrated IMHO

“We are lucky enough to have a genius in our ranks”
— Gordon Strachan

The temptation to rank, rather than rejoice, in the abilities of top footballers is an irresistible one. The practice, by its very nature, is subjective, but there are certain things we can say with certainty about Shunsuke Nakamura’s abilities. On his day, he is a sublime footballer with a wonderful first touch and great vision. He is also a world-class free-kick taker. Nakamura’s talents are Gordon Strachan’s favourite topic of conversation.

The Celtic manager’s body language changes when his name is raised. His back straightens, his eyes flash excitedly and a smile creeps across his lips. He simply adores Nakamura the footballer and is similarly in thrall to Nakamura the man. He has become his marquee signing, the player most closely associated with the kind of football utopia he has pursued at Celtic.


In the Foreword to my book, Strachan claims that, on the basis of pure ability, Nakamura is the best footballer he has worked with.

Technically, he believes him to be the equal of Eric Cantona, Strachan’s former team-mate at Leeds, and claims that he could play for any of the top teams in the world, including Barcelona or Real Madrid.

In his press relations, the Celtic manager has rarely succumbed to hyperbole, so there is added weight to his repeated assertions that the Japan midfield player is a genius

Taken from a new book called "The Zen of Naka".


Like Naka, S.Ireland will never get the full appreciation he deserves because a lot of what he does goes unnoticed. Strachan says you probably have to play the game at the highest level to appreciate Naka but I was rubbish at every level and I appreciate him. :) I don't know what the next level is but I don't think Ireland would look out of place in any premiership team which isn't bad for 22. By that I mean he wouldn't look a worse player by playing with better players, unlike so many.

[newbie]

the two of them are pretty much overrated IMHO
A Stokes was top scorer in the SPL for a while, so that tells you the level of football in scotland
S Ireland will never make the next level

and Kev Phillips and Mark Stewarts (i think,from Ipswich) were top of the Prem Lge....does that mean its a brutal league? many strikers went to the SPL and were poison but were good in England....

[Razors left peg]

the two of them are pretty much overrated IMHO
A Stokes was top scorer in the SPL for a while, so that tells you the level of football in scotland
S Ireland will never make the next level

did Stokes ever perform in the Champions League like Naka has on numerous occasions

[DmanDmythDledge]

the two of them are pretty much overrated IMHO
A Stokes was top scorer in the SPL for a while, so that tells you the level of football in scotland
S Ireland will never make the next level
There are some attributes in footballers that can be judged regardless of the level they play at. Nakamura's vision and off the ball movement is brilliant and pretty much irrelevent to the opposition.

And as razor has said he has done it in the CL as well.

[bennocelt]

did Stokes ever perform in the Champions League like Naka has on numerous occasions

Really when, i must have missed this................
But wait I can see him again when celtic head to man utd.............

[youngirish]

and Kev Phillips and Mark Stewarts (i think,from Ipswich) were top of the Prem Lge....does that mean its a brutal league? many strikers went to the SPL and were poison but were good in England....

Yeah like who? Which strikers who were good in the Premier League failed in Scotland? Even Championship strikers tend to do well in the SPL.

[youngirish]

Another threat to Ireland's place in the team:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_city/7587476.stm

[tetsujin1979]

Wright-Phillips is a winger, Ireland only played there last week because there was no other options available. SWP is a bigger threat to Etuhu if anyone. At the moment, Johson is Ireland's biggest threat. But I'd still expect SI to play this weekend

[DmanDmythDledge]

Wright-Phillips is a winger, Ireland only played there last week because there was no other options available. SWP is a bigger threat to Etuhu if anyone. At the moment, Johson is Ireland's biggest threat. But I'd still expect SI to play this weekend
Wasn't he on the right for most of last season though? I can't see him starting ahead of Johnson to be honest.

[eirebhoy]

Yeah like who? Which strikers who were good in the Premier League failed in Scotland? Even Championship strikers tend to do well in the SPL.
It's very rare for a player to even score 20 goals in the SPL, as you well know.

Anyway, SWP has to be a threat to Ireland. He's not going to play in the centre and Hughes will want to play with 2 strikers if possible.

[Scram]

Irealnd's on great form. A great pass, run down the wing, into the box and cut back last week and involved throughout.

Pity he is such a gobsh!te with a Cork temprement.

He is a great threat on the right, his goal (v Slovakia) came from him attacking from the right.

We could obviuosly do with him back in the side. The only problem is that we have too many similar attack minded midfielders.

[tetsujin1979]

Starting on the left today VS Sunderland, with SWP on the right. Surprised to see Petrov dropped for him to be honest

[irishultra]

In my opinion, Ireland has more talent than Johson, but he has better physical attributes for the middle of the park.