Republic of Ireland V Turkey, Italy, Costa Rica & Portugal - May/June 2014

Ian Rush ruined it for everyone by declaring that playing in Italy was like playing in a different country.

From a personal perspective I think there is an age at which it's awkward to relocate children. At the same time if you'rre a footballer changing jobs you'll have to relocate almost every time you move. It goes with the territory. By the time a footballer's career is finished - say 35 - it's unlikely the kids will be older than 11 so the player can settle when his oldest kid is starting secondary school, so the kids will have all the stability they can expect. Of course the player may then become a coach so it starts all over again.

Anyway, if you're in Dundee you might as well move to Palermo as Peterborough.

I see Andy Keogh is on his way to WA to play for Perth Glory. Good luck to him. Perth or Bermondsey. No brainier.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by TheOneWhoKnocks

Sexist? You can't be serious? How was anything I said remotely sexist? I didn't make any judgments.

It is a fact that most footballers wives do not work apart from the rare exception. Therefore, it should be the footballer's decision as to where he goes to make his living.

Too many of our footballers are leaving those choices to their girlfriend/wife's discretion and it impacts on on our national team, because they'll end up twiddling their thumbs in the SPL, Championship or League One when they could be testing themselves in a foreign country with a new culture and more technical level of football.

Use Gavin Gunning as an example. He's linked with Palermo. He says he's going to consult with his family before he makes a decision as to where he continues his career. He'll probably end up going to Rangers or Sheffield Wednesday at a push because his wife doesn't want to move to another country. He won't be an option if he's playing in the Scottish second division.

Look at how playing abroad has benefited Cillian Sheridan, Darren O'Dea and Kyle Lafferty. Champions League, Europa League and Serie A promotion respectively. Even Stephen Hunt retrospectively said that he regrets not moving to Valenciennes.

It's their loss and ours too. I just find it amazing that, as a country, we have disproportionately high emigration rates in proportion to comfort of living. You have Irish lads on every corner of every continent yet these pampered footballers (and wives) can't abide the thought of living in a country where people speak a different language for 2.. 3 years.

---

It's funny how what you originally said wasn't inherently sexist but in denying it you've made it clear it was. There is absolutely nothing to suggest Irish players are staying in Britain because of their wives or girlfriends apart from your own baseless speculation. O'Dea is evidence to the contrary, in fact, and I haven't seen any player suggest he turned down a move abroad because his wife didn't want to leave.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

It's funny how what you originally said wasn't inherently sexist but in denying it you've made it clear it was. There is absolutely nothing to suggest Irish players are staying in Britain because of their wives or girlfriends apart from your own baseless speculation. O'Dea is evidence to the contrary, in fact, and I haven't seen any player suggest he turned down a move abroad because his wife didn't want to leave.

---

Well with they money they can get these days it is more likely the wife would leave him if he didn't go!

Robbie's woman knows her place or maybe she can tell the difference between Birmingham and LA.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by TheOneWhoKnocks

Sexist? You can't be serious? How was anything I said remotely sexist? I didn't make any judgments.

It is a fact that most footballers wives do not work apart from the rare exception. Therefore, it should be the footballer's decision as to where he goes to make his living.

Too many of our footballers are leaving those choices to their girlfriend/wife's discretion and it impacts on on our national team, because they'll end up twiddling their thumbs in the SPL, Championship or League One when they could be testing themselves in a foreign country with a new culture and more technical level of football.

Use Gavin Gunning as an example. He's linked with Palermo. He says he's going to consult with his family before he makes a decision as to where he continues his career. He'll probably end up going to Rangers or Sheffield Wednesday at a push because his wife doesn't want to move to another country. He won't be an option if he's playing in the Scottish second division.

Look at how playing abroad has benefited Cillian Sheridan, Darren O'Dea and Kyle Lafferty. Champions League, Europa League and Serie A promotion respectively. Even Stephen Hunt retrospectively said that he regrets not moving to Valenciennes.

It's their loss and ours too. I just find it amazing that, as a country, we have disproportionately high emigration rates in proportion to comfort of living. You have Irish lads on every corner of every continent yet these pampered footballers (and wives) can't abide the thought of living in a country where people speak a different language for 2.. 3 years.

---

Yes, it's all the fault of those lazy gold-diggers... :rolleyes: Whether it's to appear opinionated or assertive or whatever, you have a habit of jumping to brash conclusions or the most extreme position possible based on little more than your own preconceptions and made a sweeping remark that I sensed betrayed an element of casual sexism. Sure enough, my senses hadn't deceived me. If it requires pointing out, didn't you judge the wives of players to be primarily (singly?) at fault for what you perceive to be a failing of Irish footballers? You also appear to have some interesting views on a "woman's place" to boot; not only are these selfish gold-diggers holding back their husband's careers by speaking above their station, in doing so, they're also depriving us fans of the entertainment we're due!...

Why don't you hold Irish footballers accountable for their own decisions? Who's holding back single Irish footballers? And what gives you the impression most footballers' wives don't work? Even if some don't, you think that should deny them a voice? It's only natural a player would consult his wife on a decision that would affect them jointly. That doesn't abrogate him of personal responsibility, nor does it mean you can lump blame upon his wife when a private decision is made between two sentient beings that isn't to your personal liking.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by geysir

Robbie's woman knows her place or maybe she can tell the difference between Birmingham and LA.

---

Yes Alabama kind of looks like CA in places but she can tell the diff.

Italy announce their starting XI: https://twitter.com/Vivo_Azzurro/sta...25394742673409

Quote:

---

#Italy starting team vs @FAIreland #Sirigu #Darmian #Paletta #Bonucci #DeSciglio #Motta #Verratti #Montolivo #Marchisio #Immobile #Rossi

---

Glenn Whelan should be tailor-made to man mark Immobile.

It's funny how things pan out. Two years ago, Noel King's U21s went to Italy where, playing most of the game with their first choice centre-half red carded, they won 4-2 to an Italy side featuring Immobile and El-Shaarawy up front. El-Shaarawy has been a mainstray at Milan for a couple of years and would be going to the World Cup were it not for injuries, while Immobile has just replaced Lewandowski at Dortmund. Conor Henderson scored two in that match (as far as I recall) and has just been released by Hull.

That was a dead rubber game for Italy who were perhaps taken aback that Ireland didn't grab the offered traditional draw.

Dead rubber or not, they played a full team. I don't buy the idea that international teams show up and play at half speed.

Even so, they still walked the group and went on to contest the final of the tournament. It seems perfectly logical that their players would be doing better than ours now, one seemingly freakish result aside.

Well yeah you'd expect them to do well, it's just interesting to see where the respective squads have gone. A good few of them have played for Italy whereas none of ours have played senior international footballer even though the step up is much less steep.

The traditional sides seem to be able to nurture the talent much better alright.

I don't think it's even that, I think most sides are pretty good at it. To be fair, from that team, Duffy, Hendrick, Cunningham and Brady were all missing through injury and suspension having played in the previous game.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

Dead rubber or not, they played a full team. I don't buy the idea that international teams show up and play at half speed.

---

Heh, you clearly haven't been to a few Ireland games over the years, especially certain home friendlies...
:rolleyes:

These quotes from Doyle seem to support my long-held suspicion, from looking at their body language when playing together, that Doyle's relationship with Robbie Keane is a working relationship but not much more.

http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/inter...obbies-record/

What quotes support that?

I thought it was very begrudging praise. The kind TOWK gives him!

It's certainly a TOWK-like interpretation of what he said :)

I see a lot of TOWK in you, Stutts.

Anyway, someone should tell Kevin that we don't want him to do different things better, we want him to do what Robbie did, create & score goals or just score goals
If Robbie thought other stuff was important, then he would have done it ....... better than anybody else.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

I see a lot of TOWK in you, Stutts.

---

I was gonna say it. But now I can rest easy that we now have a new meme. Go Chuck go.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by geysir

Anyway, someone should tell Kevin that we don't want him to do different things better, we want him to do what Robbie did, create & score goals or just score goals
If Robbie thought other stuff was important, then he would have done it ....... better than anybody else.

---

That's an almost beautiful summation of the player. Well played sir.

https://twitter.com/FAIreland/status...096641/photo/1

https://twitter.com/FAIreland/status...096641/photo/1 https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bo-3pRRIUAELreb.jpg


Italy look a little short on subs.

Ah, Andrea Ranocchia, he was always an instant buy in PES when a 16yo.

And now the time is upon us... link me people...

Link ?
http://coolsport.tv/fsistream25.html

Keith Andrews looks like he's been to the hairdresser for a perm, I want to check out his suit but I am just wondering what he has on his head. The point is to look good, but don't deflect from the highlight with some other distraction.
Good lively pundit review with Keith, Kev Kilbane and Brian Kerr.

To think Keano want to leave days like this for Cowdenbeath, Perth and Aberdeen

Well.... replace Whelan, Wilson and McClean with Hendrick, Meyler and Pilkington and you have more of a goal threat anyway.

That Italian anthem is for cissies, an embarrassing ditty to sing before going into battle.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by geysir

Link ?
http://coolsport.tv/fsistream25.html

Keith Andrews looks like he's been to the hairdresser for a perm, I want to check out his suit but I am just wondering what he has on his head. The point is to look good, but don't deflect from the highlight with some other distraction.
Good lively pundit review with Keith, Kev Kilbane and Brian Kerr.

To think Keano want to leave days like this for Cowdenbeath, Perth and Aberdeen

---

Cheers.

The Italian goalie is the grand master of the Orange Order this evening, a horrendous joke of an outfit.

Forde goes down with lightening speed. to catch that ball.

That Immobile fella is eh, pretty mobile.

Pearce isn't use to our 'play it out from the back' game.

Montolivo - I've never seen an injured player look cooler. He really wears a bruised knee with style.

The entire Italian team look like something out of GQ.

What was the tackle like?

EDIT: Saw replay. eugh.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by BonnieShels

What was the tackle like?

---

Pearce won the ball but their knees clashed in the follow-through, just unfortunate.

It wasn't even a tackle, Pearce got there first and there was a collision of sorts, Pearce just has tough legs, no crime in that.