Printable View
Elliot and Morrison should start and if that isn't working out Keane and Connolly should be brought on early in the 2nd half.If that ain't producing then Harte should come on for the last 10 minutes in the hope we get a set piece,we don't have many options and maybe a kick up the swiss roll and a spell on the bench might just be the spark to get Robbie going again.
on paper yes .. on current form no .... elliott should not be dropped after saturdayQuote:
Originally Posted by Cosmo
Quote:
Originally Posted by zinedineontour
Thats it in a nutshell. Elliot should not be dropped. Clinton is available so its a straight tossup between CLint and Robbie Keane.
don't know what is up with Robbie. I know for a fact that without Clinton in this campaign we'd be f**ked big time. Now Elliott is on the scene it is giving Kerr another option to consider. I'd give Robbie the benefit of the doubt for one more match, but he better prove he wants it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shakermaker1982
we dont have that luxury - its win or bust (or score or bust) - robbie was dreadful against france, earned his dropping there alone - than goes and misses a chance to make it 2-0 v cyprus with poor first touch, clinical he aint
I wouldn't dream of dropping him, he's one of our only players capable of producing something out of nothing...off form or not.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shakermaker1982
But this is a do-or-die match...we can't afford to give him benefit of the doubt!!
rubbish, you could say that about clinton morrison but not robbie - he's created nothing out of nothing
drop him!
big time players like Robbie have done it before and can do it again. He did the business against Germany and if he stayed on the pitch against Israel we'd have won. He has been ****e but so has everybody else bar Given and Clinton.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tired&Emotional
He is out of form but the Swiss won't want to be up against him, they'd love to see Elliott lining up and I'm not being disrespectful to Steven. Have faith lads, Keano, Clinton and Andy Reid are our only creative sparks left. We need all 3 to play with Duffer gone.
You cant score if players dont give you the ball.
Our midfield were terrible against Cyprus, they all stood off, they never tracked their men and when they got the ball they didnt know what to do with it.
Dropping a guy who averages almost a goal a game at international level is knee-jerk madness. He isnt getting games at Spurs but he still comes on and has bailed them out twice in the last few weeks.
You dont drop your topscorer going into a game that you must win - catch yourselves on. Whats the alternative ? pick two strikers from League one , one of which has played about 10 matches and the other one was being slated on here for the last 12 months because he wasnt good enough ?
Its Keane plus Elliot or Morrison and if we need a goal because its 0-0 with 20 mins to go Doherty is on as well.
good point Wallis, our MF is shocking. Kavanagh (man with 2 left feet) taking corners??!! Kilbane who makes the Sunday league error of following the ball instead of watching his opposition run right past him and receive the ball. He did that at least 15 times Saturday night & Finnan = don't get me started.
am i gettin the general feeling that people are finally beginning to recognise just how hard clinton morrison works for ireland compared to other players. just imagine how hard he had to work to keep himself match fit for them games these qualifiers when he was scoring vital goals whilst playing no more than 30minutes a MONTH. he has to start
I know Robbie had an awful game on Saturday but this is not the time to drop him. If we qualify for the World Cup, he should be dropped for a couple of friendlies to see what his reaction is. However, this is a massive game and like it or lump it, Robbie is one of our star performers. We need all the experience we can muster for this game. I honestly belive Robbie will reply with a big performance. Senderos and Muller are big, uncompromising central defenders who could easily bully Elliott. I'd start with Clinton and Robbie. Clinton has been playing well for Palace and is bound to be confident. They've started a lot of games together and formed a good partnership. Elliott would offer a viable option off the bench.
Its not a time for knee-jerk reactions. The Swiss would love to hear that Robbie is on the bench. How confident do you think the Swiss would be if they saw a teamsheet without the names of Duff, Roy and Robbie? I honestly belive that Robbie and Clinton will provide big performances on Wednesday night. I'm more concerned about our midfield to be honest.
That's a good point about the service being poor for our strikers on Saturday. We had a lot of poor performers but there's no point making a scapegoat out of Robbie. If anyone should be dropped it should be Kavanagh who was woeful.
Robbie Keane is our most talented forward but his international form is terrible. I still don't see Kerr dropping him though.
Choices are:
Keane or Elliot
Morrision or Doyle
I goal in the Premiership but Connolly is still crap. He can mind the kit bags or something as offers nothing as impact player.
Wednesday night is not the time to drop Robbie, maybe in the next qualifiers but not Wednesday. I think Robbie will be really up for this one to prove a point after his display against Les Bleu, we all saw how fired up he was when he got that superb goal against Aston Villa when he had a point to prove. He will do it for Wednesday but I'm not sure of it will be enough.
Funny enough that because I recall Connolly saying after he scored a hattrick against Liechtenstein that: 'Charlie O'Leary our kitman would have scored a hattrick out there tonight'. Could it be that Connolly is about to take over the legendary mantle of Charlie?:DQuote:
Originally Posted by pete
Quote:
Originally Posted by Don Vito
Hang on a minute. We had a match last Saturday that was the time for him to prove his point. He has been playing poorly in general for Ireland through this campaign.
I agree with Don Vito. This is not the time to drop Robbie. The service to the front pair was awful on Saturday. Ireland were on the backfoot for most of the game. He has 4 goals for us in this campaign which is more than Morrison or Elliott. I seem to recall him taking Israel apart for the first 20 minutes at Lansdowne Road. Robbie has the ability to score out of nothing.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kingdom
Wallis made the point earlier that supply to Robbie is great and I agree but that can't excuse other parts of his game eg when he has the ball and is tackled. It seems to me that whenever he's loses the ball all he can do is throw a dissenting arm in the air, put on a moany face and shout in the direction of the ref. He makes no effort to try to win the ball back, imo....that's one thing that annoys me...!