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According to today's Daily Express (a rag I know):
"Fulham winger Damien Duff's calf injury is not as bad as first feared. The 30-year-old limped out of Saturday's 1-0 home defeat by Arsenal after only nine minutes and will miss Thursday's Europa League match with Basel. However, he is expected to be fit for the visit of Roma on 22 October."
If Duffer's injury is not so severe then two weeks to the Montenegro game might give him a chance.
Anyone suggesting Steven Reid on the right should stop watching football. Sweet Jesus.......
I completely agree. One should not forget how out of place he was and must have felt, playing there against Germany in Stuttgart, 2006, when Stan must have thought this was the place to play him. He's a central midfielder and that is that!Quote:
Originally Posted by 4tothefloor
For me, I'd rather Liam Lawrence played on the right and McGeady on the left... but if Duff isn't fit, it will likely be Hunt and McGeady operating as wingers.
Positive news on Duff this morning: http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...h-1901089.html
Quote:
"For Damien, at the moment, it would be very much touch and go (with relation to Italy)," said Hodgson yesterday. "We think he will be at least two weeks from when he picked up the injury. So that would take him to Ireland's first match so it will be touch and go."
Morrisson has ****ed off the Don Givens though, and there doesn't seem to be any coming back from that, no matter how good your form is.
why, what did he do to **** off don givens?
Sorry, I'm getting mixed up. He was blamed for the Cyprus game though (even though he played up front last time I checked), so by association with that he's never going to be picked again.
Don Givens has done more harm that good in his time in charge of the Ireland team and as temporary manager for the senior team. He has fallen out with more players than anyone I've ever heard in charge of a team, and this is just another example. How he still has a job and is obviously held in such high esteem within the FAI is beyond me.
Wouldn't fancy Lawrence, he has no experience at this level.Quote:
Originally Posted by noddy102
He's got two caps now. He's a good enough, mature enough and wise enough player to succeed.Quote:
Originally Posted by Leeside Swagger
It is exactly what we need against Italy. An unknown player, under their radar, who can hit a set-piece.
We don't have any other natural right winger to choose from.
Can't say I'd like to see Lawrence start against Italy. We play with two wingers, Lawrence can't play as a winger and that was pretty obvious in his two internationals to date imo.
The last thing we want is a repeat of Keogh's opening 30mins against Italy. Better to stick with experience for this one.Quote:
Originally Posted by noddy102
He wasn't played on his preferred side in either game if I recall correctly?Quote:
Originally Posted by ifk101
I know he played on the right against Nigeria, can't remember against SA- fell asleep during that one. The wingers usually rotate sides in game as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by noddy102
I think Lawrence has a bit of character about him and would be able to handle the pressure of the italy game despite just having 2 caps and is probably more likely to get you a goal than McGeady tbh.
Do you think Trap is fixed about 2 wingers playing in traditional sense of wingers?Quote:
Originally Posted by ifk101
I think Trap if he had to, can easily accommodate Lawrence in the team playing out wide. He is a mature enough player with plenty of league experience, plus a handy free kick technique.
I think there's only a handful of people on this site who appreciate the difference between a winger and a wide midfielder. Keogh is neither by the way, but the fact that Trap has played him there suggests he's not hubng up on playing traditional wingers. He wants a guy who is comfortable playing wide, be it a winger or a wide midfielder. Laewrence is a perfectly good option on the right.
... or not prepared to deviate from his tactics which is more players adapting to the system rather than vice versa. Yes Lawrence can play as a right midfielder but he's not a winger in the sense Duff or McGeady are. As the system employed by Trapattoni depends on the two wingers providing a creative and attacking threat, the inclusion of a non-winger in the winger position obviously weakens the team as evident by Keogh's sub-standard performances and the lukewarm performances by Lawrence in his 2 internationals.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuttgart88
Don't agree with that.
I don't think you can read anything into Keogh's performances & impact on the RHS other than that the guy is a forward and nothing else. I'm simply saying that the right side of the pitch requires a specialist, but there are two types of player that can specialise in that area - an old fashioned winger or what I'd call a "wide midfielder".
What I think you can deduce is that Trap prefers solidity rather than creativity in the middle.
Let's face it, Hunt doesn't exactly offer guile out wide, more of a "head down and run" approach combined with a half decent delivery and good work ethic. Lawrence is a variation of Hunt in that regard. Duff, McGeady and Andy Reid have more in the natural talent department. Trap has been more than happy to deploy Hunt, so to me that infers that functionality rather than creativity out wide is as important to Trap.
I'd be inclined to say that balance is the key for Trap, but that'd pose the question, what the F was Keogh ever doing there?
I think if Trap had come in with a clean slate, and not watched DVDs of the last campaign (which he did do), then he'd use Keogh exclusively as a forward.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuttgart88
But the videos he watched of the Stan era included matches where Keogh played wide right, and so it was in his head that he was a winger.
I hope that phase is done though, and if we do use Keogh in future, that it's up top, because he's absolutely hopeless on the wing (through no fault of his own, it's simply not his position).