And I don’t think I fully agree with your statement - Rice, Browne, Robinson, Duffy are a few that spring to mind.
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And I don’t think I fully agree with your statement - Rice, Browne, Robinson, Duffy are a few that spring to mind.
Exactly. O dowda is the only similar player to Crowley who could play as a ten with creativity and guile. Poor judge has never recovered since the horror injury. Brady has been lost when played in the position for us.Quote:
Originally Posted by The Fly
if we want to play possession football and don't want Georgia to own the ball against us like they usually do we need players like Crowley. If we want to continue with hoofball then he mightn't be that helpful
If any of those 14 players you mention above had the ability to be a creative force in the Irish midfield, no one would be calling for Crowley's inclusion.Quote:
Originally Posted by samhaydenjr
I don't know... I thought Judge was supposed to be pretty creative. I know I may not get to see enough games to say for certain, so maybe I'd better check with someone else from the forum:Quote:
Originally Posted by mark12345
;)Quote:
Originally Posted by mark12345
Anyway, is it absolutely necessary to have a small player who can pass a bit and is having a decent enough season at a mid-sized Eredivisie team? I mean, while we are still a little thin in midfield we have four Premier League midfielders; Browne has 11 goals and 4 assists so far this season and has come on in leaps and bounds recently - it's probably only a matter of time before he's a Premier League player; Hourihane has 5 goals and 9 assists, leaving him fourth in the Championship assists rankings; O'Dowda has four goals in his last twelve appearances and four assists for the season has come on in leaps and bounds recently - it's probably only a matter of time before he's a Premier League player; McClean has six assists and lots of International experience. In League One, McGeady has eight goals and five assists, but he's probably still capable of doing it at a higher level for a year and has lots of international experience.
Look, if Crowley's commitment and breakthrough had happened this time last year, I would have said "Absolutely! Use the Summer friendlies to blood him in and give him the competitive experience in the Nations League". But we're going straight into Euro 2020 qualifiers and our squad needs to be ready to go, not still awaiting final tests.
However, as I have repeatedly said, there may be a case to be made for taking a chance on him in the first half, as two of or first four are against Gibraltar. But that doesn't mean absolute entitlement to a squad place.
Agree with most of what you say here re: Crowley. The pity is that he should have been blooded by now by O'Neill (assuming as we are that he's been eligible for quite some time now).
I would look to give him some game time in Gibraltar (perhaps with a couple of goals in the bank in the second half). Not an ideal situation, as you say, but the only one open to us right now.
I don't rate any of the players mentioned as playmakers. I like Browne's work rate and O'Dowda's guile and McClean can never be faulted for his effort but he's never going to be a creative force.
Football has moved on as we see every weekend when watching Liverpool / City / Tottenham, and unfortunately we are the land that time forgot. We will face that type of playing style in Switzerland and Denmark and even Georgia, so ball retention is going to be key. A lot is resting on Mick McCarthy's shoulders right now. If you turn on the TV for the first game and see Duffy or Keogh hoofing the ball long in the first five minutes, you should know it's going to be a long, long campaign.
That's fair enough. It's a pity there isn't a friendly or two before then for McCarthy and the management team to have a look at a few things, but there's still scope to try something in the Gibraltar game which is first up.Quote:
Originally Posted by SkStu
He hasn't been. He gave an interview a couple of months ago where he said he'd request to change his nationality if he was called up. There is no suggestion that he's made any sort of request since.Quote:
Originally Posted by mark12345
Don't know what the situation is with this lad but Armstrong Okoflex is on the bench v Kilmarnock today
That's very disappointing if true. I thought the paperwork was out of the way and his being called up to the squad was just a formality at this stage.Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin
Don't you think the intended new country would have to be a part of the transfer request, at least to say 'we're interested in you should you be willing to go through the transfer process'?Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin
It's a divorce but the player who initiates the divorce would need to have the bit on the side to be serious enough to participate in the process and be waiting with open arms.
I'm sure all they'd have to do is contact the association to say they'd like to initiate the process. I can only read between the lines on Crowley but I got the impression from what he said in an interview (with the Independent I think) that he wouldn't do it without it being made worth his while.
I think he'd have to be asked first by the FAI, it's only proper to be invited to join should he so wish. The process of applying for the switch is not just a divorce process, a player virtually has to declare his other interest and to his dying day that's the intl team he wants to play for.Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin
Ah, if the Rice situation proves anything it's that player's are capable of making whatever decision they like. If he wants to play for Ireland he's fully able to make contact himself.
Of course he can make contact with the FAI but seeing as Mick is already travelling around England selling the notion of Ireland to some half ársed (nationality wise) average players, it's a no brainer for Mick to contact a talented player willing to be contacted and the FAI then guide him through the transfer process.Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin
A no brainer.
Will Keane hopes to be available in the next few months - https://www.irishexaminer.com/breaki...on-905217.html
I missed that he scored on the weekend, his second since his move to Ipswich. A little difficult to gauge where he'd be right not in the ranking - how do we compare him to our three free-scoring League One forwards (Collins, Cox and Curtis)? How does he compare with Aiden O'Brien, Scott Hogan or a fit-again Jon Walters? Are these two goals just a mini-streak, or actually a sign that he's ready to deliver on his youth career promise? Now if he does keep this form going, and scores another 4-6 by the end of the season, he might move up the list and be comparable to Sean Maguire. In that case it might be worth our while looking at him in the home game against Gibraltar and/or the Bulgaria friendly. But even then, we may still be looking to build up the caps for Obafemi, Robinson and Maguire.Quote:
Originally Posted by DeLorean
All that said, it's nice to see him come on board, hopefully it will encourage a certain Netherlands-based midfielder to commit fully to us
Will Keane's declaration doesn't get me excited at all. An injury plagued striker (who had potential one time) who is on loan from Hull to Ipswich who are rooted to the bottom of the Championship and heading into League 1. We are really at a low ebb if we are relying on him to be our saviour.Quote:
Originally Posted by DeLorean
I understand, definitely not punching the air at that one - assuming everybody's fully fit, the forwards for our game against Gibraltar must surely come from Long, Obafemi, McGoldrick, Robinson and Maguire, so I hope McCarthy isn't going to shaft one of them to accommodate a late-joiner with a less-than-stellar record (albeit injury affected) just to entice him to come on board. However, like I said, if this loan move to Ipswich gives him the chance to deliver on his early promise and leave his injury worries behind and he scores regularly between now and the end of the season, then perhaps he will be worth a second look in the Autumn (I think his contract at Hull is up in May also, so he'd want a permanent deal arranged by then also)Quote:
Originally Posted by TrapAPony
That said, he's almost certainly not our goalscoring saviour, just potentially a useful squad player - although the chances of him being our fifth-best striker in a year's time are probably not that much better than the chances of him being fifteenth.
Excellent header, in fairness:
https://youtu.be/k1gR94fT7WI?t=94
He looks like the closest thing we have to Cilian Sheridan.... literally.
I'd prefer if he reminded you of Zlatan.Quote:
Originally Posted by SkStu