I think the team will be:
Given, McShane, Dunne, O'Shea, Kilbane, Mcgeady, Whelan, Andrews, Duff, Keane, Doyle.
although i would have hoped for foley instead of McShane. Id even prefer Kelly or Carr.
I honestly think we can win this game 1-0 or 2-1
I think the team will be:
Given, McShane, Dunne, O'Shea, Kilbane, Mcgeady, Whelan, Andrews, Duff, Keane, Doyle.
although i would have hoped for foley instead of McShane. Id even prefer Kelly or Carr.
I honestly think we can win this game 1-0 or 2-1
agree with everything you said on team lineup and prediction But i dont want to see carr play for ireland again.Quote:
Originally Posted by richieos
Was a great player but not good enough now - he has retired from INTL football anyway- better for every1 he stays retired imo
Im going for Ireland to win 2-0
I think Bulgaria will be tough but I think they lack confidence at the moment and even with new manager I think Irerland will have too much in the tank for them
ireland 2-1 bulgaria
italy 0-0 ireland
i would be vey pleased if those two results were for real..Quote:
Originally Posted by kingdomkerry
I really do think Italy are there for taking but im still very worried by our midfield..
I think we have enough for Bulgaria but i think draw is best we get against Italy.
4 points would be good job done
This is going to be an incredibly difficult week, I expect us to beat Bulgaria but we need to be at 100%. A drew would be a brilliant result in Bari, although I'd take the win there if you offered it to me. We cant afford to have any injury to a key player between now and April 2nd. I'd have liked Stephen Ireland to contact Trap and make himself available for the Bulgaria game but hey-ho. Cant wait for it actually..........
Im not even thinking about Italy honestly.
I think after the Georgia start they will come out better and take charge. Although giving up the early goal to Georgia seemed like a good thing ultimately. Sometimes that stuff can spurn you on.
Eire 4-2
Really don't want to see Andrews playing, but I've a terrible feeling he will.
Lads, I can only admire the optimism but it is to my great sadness that I cannot share it. I'm afraid I don't see Ireland as being anywhere near clinical enough to knock any more than 2 goals past any team in this group, and Bulgaria will be the technically strongest team we will have come up against: the first 'real' team we've faced, as Dunphy might put it.
I think this game has a score draw written all over it. The Bulgarians will have watched the Polish and Georgian games and will certainly come out on the offensive and try and unsettle us early on. How ready we will be for this, mentally and tactically, is anyone's guess. I don't for a minute think that Trap would neglect to impress the importance of standing firm from the off to his players, but the nerves generated by the event can dislodge even the best-taught of lessons. I think we will score, but I also think we will concede - at least once. It will just be that type of game. Plenty of talking points. Lots of chances - heart-in-mouth moments. Both teams know how important this is for the fate of their standing in the group.
I don't see us thrashing anybody these days, but I don't see anybody thrashing us either. Two goals are all that will be in it. The most optimistic prediction that I can allow myself in the circumstances is the following:
Ireland 2 Bulgaria 2
Italy 1 Ireland 1
Two points would be a decidedly positive return and a huge boost to our qualification hopes. Firstly, we stay unbeaten, which reinforces the team's morale and the belief in Trap's methods. Secondly, we maintain the distance between the Bulgars and ourselves (don't forget that they drew with Italy - a result we may have to equal if we are to stay abreast of them in this group. No mean feat, gentlemen.) - and if anything, drawing with Italy away is an even greater achievement than what the Bulgars managed at home in Sofia.
I am very keen to hear grounded, reasoned opinions from those who see us beating Bulgaria on Saturday week. Come kick-off I will be somewhere in the Cusack (having had to shell out an outrageous €85 for the privilege, but anyway...), roaring my head off, making innumerable deals with God to give us the lead and keep the Bulgarians scoreless, praying, hoping, wishing out loud... But now there is just about enough time, before the emotional fever of pre-match excitement properly kicks in, to cast some cool, rational reflection on our chances.
We face a technically gifted side who, if they have done their homework, will know that to shut down Ireland's wingers is to shut down Ireland. If they manage this, I don't know where the creativity is going to come from. We have been solid but unspectacular, and have shown the very encouraging knack of digging out results in unlikely and often unattractive situations. Bulgaria will call upon that ability, certainly, but Montenegro aside, they possess the best and most potent attack we will have faced yet. I'm not convinced that Bulgaria are strong enough to beat us at Croker, but equally I don't see why we have many grounds to expect ourselves to beat them either. We are a tight, well-organised outfit, not without its weaknesses. We have long struggled against technically proficient sides, big and small. Of late we have shown the organisation and grit not to get beaten by these teams. But beating them? In the words of Fox Mulder, 'I want to believe'. But I just don't see it happening. A draw at best, and a narrow defeat in Bari are my most painfully honest expectations of what will actually happen.
I welcome any and all comments that give reason for optimism, of course.
Lord, help my unbelief!
Who would you prefer, from the available players?Quote:
Originally Posted by mackannovic
Well, my reasons for thinking that Ireland stand a good chance of winning are:Quote:
Originally Posted by TerryPhelan
1. I believe that Montengro are a stronger side than Bulgaria man for man, and also seem to have much better team spirit, and weve already drawn with them away from home.
2. I believe that man for man, bulgarias first 11 doesnt compare to Irelands, and yes i have done my homework. Take out Berbatov (who i believe is heavily overrated) and Petrov, and they have a very very average side. They struggle greatly in defence, and their new manager Stoilov has resorted to calling up three 32 year old players, who are relatively inexperienced at international level for their age, which seems to me to be an act of desperation. I think the manager will know that he has to focus on shutting down our wingers, but with the quality of defenders bulgaria have at their disposal, i think they will struggle greatly to do this.
3. I believe that Georgia have a better back 5 than bulgaria, and we have managed to score 4 times in 2 games against them.
4. People point to our central midfield, but other than Stiliyan Petrov, they have little or nothing in central midfield, and their main creative force Martin Petrov is missing.
5. Cyprus and Georgia both played 5 in midfield against us when we struggled, but Stoilov prefers to play with an open 4-3-3 formation, which in my opinion plays right into Irelands hands, and i think Traps tactics perfectly counter this.
I'm definatley not saying its a sure thing, but i think we have a great chance of beating them at Croke Park. Apologies for the drawn out post!
The Bulgarian game will depend on the influence of their new manage, if they are interested it will be a long hard night, but regardless I think the worst we will do is draw 1-1 but I hope we can grab a second goal to win.
Sadley we will be out of gas in Italy and despite the fact this is still a poor Italian team I thik they will win 0ne or two nil with both goals comming late in the second half.
Ever the optimist I will be at both matchs believing Ireland will win.
agree with this and good to see such a well thought out and balanced post here. I have a feeling that 2 possibly 3 points from this set of fixtures is about right. If we get 3, it will be the Bulgarian game.Quote:
Originally Posted by TerryPhelan
I am naturally pessimistic regarding Ireland football these days though so here's hoping...
(PS - good to see that Terry Phelan can take some time out from scampering down the left wing to post on foot.ie)
what he saidQuote:
Originally Posted by kingdomkerry
i am clambering on board here , i believe montenegro are just as good as bulgaria too , also the two midfielders from the bundesliga chankov and the other fella are not up to much at all. bulgaria are second seeds but i believe we are the better team and will win , petrov a huge loss for them , new manager will need a while to make a difference...Quote:
Originally Posted by richieos
ireland 2-1 bulgaria doyle,duff
ireland 0-0 italy
Usually not the most positive but i think if we get 3 points out of these two games we have to be happy. That obviously is a win over Bulgaria, at that rate it almost guarantees us the play off spot.
I really feel though that the next two games and the Italian game in particular is where having a strong tactical manager in charge will really show its worth.
I dont think we will lose to Bulgaria and with the likes of Martin Petrov likely to be absent we have a chance of sneaking a win. We are not going to win well by any means and it will be a nervy night. I need to do a bit more research on them but I think our defence should be strong enough to keep them out. The question is whether our midfield and attack will be able to do the damage. It is vital we dont give anyway anything silly. If you were in the Bulgarian camp, you wouldve identified our weaknesses in centre midfield, right back and our poor starts of late as been areas of opportunity.
Although getting a result in Italy is going to be a difficult task, I think this is the type of game where Trap can excel. It will be a defensive performance from Ireland where we aim to nick a goal from a set piece or on the break. This I believe is the scenario when Trap's system is strongest. IMO the system is at its weakest when forced to chase a game because we dont really have to players to do so, although we did manage to turn the Georgia game around (just about)
I agree with that.
Would not be suprised if we got a result against italy cause its a game like this that the tactics we employ are most effective.
really enjoyed reading Terry Phelans post there. Well thought out and would agree with it more or less. i've said before i don't agree we'll beat bulgaria, but i think 2 points from these two matches would be a great result.
However, if we did beat Bulgaria, i think we are more likely to go and get the draw in Italy. The pressure would be off, and the atmosphere brilliant as all the fans won't be nervous about getting enough points as we'd already have got more than we thought we would.
Anyway, great post, great to see people thinking/worrying about this as much as others!!
On the basis that its less likely to happen if I write it down.
Ireland 1 Bulgaria 2
Italy 2 Ireland 0
I am not confident on the basis of performances against Serbia, Columbia, Cyprus, Poland and Georgia at home that our midfield or back four (especially if it contains McShane and Kilbane) is good enough to get results in these games. I sincerely hope I am wrong, but I have bad feelings.
ireland 1-0 bulgaria
italy 0-0 ireland
i can really see us not conceding in either game but cant see us hammering in the ball in the back of the net in either game. i can see us getting a late late goal v bulgaria and a boring game in italy dominated by the 2 midfields. Andrews included!!!!!!
Here goes....
Ireland 1-0 Bulgaria
Italy 2-0 Ireland.
I think a 1-0 win for us is fare more likely than a 2-2 game to be honest and I cannot see an open game as Terry Phelan has said. I think it will be a nervous tense affair somewhere in between the Wales and Slovakia home games of last year. I think the game will either be 1-0 to us or a 1-1 draw to be honest.
For the Italy game it will either be 0-0 if we have one of those nights from the Jack Charlton era or Brian Kerr 2005 where we are solid away from home against a top team. However I think Italy winning 2-0 is the most likely there.
So basically what I said??Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilMcD
Thats all you had to say Neil.. :p
its only less likely if its IRELAND remember!!Quote:
Originally Posted by third policeman
Ireland 1 Bulgaria 0 - Keane scores early again and we hold on for dear life in the 2nd half.
Italy 0 Ireland 0 - bore draw or a flukey 1 nil win would do very nicely.
2-0 Ireland. Liam Brady to have a stormer and get sent off.
Terry, your post is right on the money. Everything you say is accurate - I hope you are slightly off on the results though. I would like to think we can get a win against Bulgaria - the game is really there for the taking for whichever team imposes itself on the other early on.
You mention Bulgaria shutting down our wingers. I agree that would be a smart tactic for them and in that regard I think we should have Stephen Hunt (one who can run at defences and keep them off guard) on from the start, possibly in place of Whelan. I'm also one who fancies Robbie playing as an attacking midfielder with Doyle and Noel Hunt as the front two.
But we'll have to possess the ball a lot better through the middle than we did against Georgia.
If we get the three points against Bulgaria I don't care what happens in Bari.
Ah come on man..Quote:
Originally Posted by mark12345
Stan, is that you?Quote:
Originally Posted by mark12345
0-0 ..
Bulgaria diving about the place, get 4 of our players booked, eventually win a penalty, Shay goes the wrong way (some ballboy had swiped his iPod from the back of the net).
I know that this is an Ireland fansite, but the blind optimism is shocking. I believe that we will lose both games. Bulgaria will be technically a lot better that Georgia, who we only beat with the most ridiculous penalty ever given.
Richeos says that man for man Bulgarias first XI doesn't compare to Irelands. How many of these players has he actually seen play?? How does Stanislav Angelov (Energie Cottbus) compare to Glenn Whelan(Stoke) for example?? Both playing for relegation threatened teams?? I would imagine that just as most of us don't know a lot of the Bulgarian team, most bulgarians would not know whelan, andrews, mcshane, keogh, kelly, n. hunt. So to say man for man we are better is ridiculous.
I think 1-2 to bulgaria and 3-0 to Italy, with the excuses about it being a young (in international terms) and inexperienced team being trotted out afterwards. And we know whos fault the squad is.
weldoninhio, I think a lot of people are arguing that Bulgaria are about the same level as Montenegro who we deservedly drew with away from home (while Bulgaria would supposedly have been lucky to lose by just the 1). We're playing at home now. I'd expect us to beat Montengro, Bulgaria, Cyprus at home. These teams are on the same level imo (Georgia have the players too but obviously not the team). Maybe we're on that level too but we're the team at home.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Montenegrin
Quote:
Originally Posted by Montenegrin
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Originally Posted by Montenegrin
Quote:
Originally Posted by Montenegrin
I've watched every bulgaria game in these qualifiers, and the highlights of their euro 2008 qualifiers, and i've also researced the new players brought in by Stoilov. I said man for man our first choice 11 is better than theirs, and you're mentioning people like keogh and noel hunt who are nowhere near the first 11. All it takes is a bit of research into these players histories, their success, their international records to tell you that we have a better starting 11. Can Bulgaria say that they have one of the top 5 keepers in europe, with the captain of Manchester City and a man who has made over 300 appearances for Manchester United infront of him? Martin Petrov and Duff are of similar ability, but Petrov is out, they have nobody of McGeadys talent, they have Berbatov up front, but nobody to partner him, when we have Kevin Doyle, who has proved to be a fine international player. Stoilov has resorted to recalling three 32 year old defenders, Igor Tomasic, Elin Topuzakov and Dimitar Telkiyski, and the 35 year old radostin kishishev, who was an average player in his prime. I'm usually quite pessimistic, but the facts are that we have a stronger first 11 than they do, and id say that a lot of bulgarian fans would even admit this. Again, im not saying were going to hammer bulgaria, but i think we should definatley be looking to beat them at home.Quote:
Originally Posted by weldoninhio
It's not blind optimism - the fact is that we're at home and we've actually got a very good record at home against second / third ranked teams. Bulgaria have not played well for at least a year now. We've got some very good players with question marks over right back and central midfield Nobody denies this here but I think the players we have are good enough to beat Bulgaria at home if they play well and avoid dumb mistakes. This is measured opinion, not blind optimism.Quote:
Originally Posted by weldoninhio
And anyway, I do think it's worth people watching the Georgia game again. Bad start - but next 75 minutes was perfectly decent, actually quite good in parts.
Quote:
Originally Posted by weldoninhio
Good man Eamonn. Put your hat in the ring for Trap's job so on the 2nd of April.:rolleyes:
Berbatov left Craven Cottage with his leg in a cast apparently....
Swollen ankle according to this - http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n174959
Quote:
Bulgarian centre forward Dimitar Berbatov landed awkwardly on his ankle at the end of the first half of today’s match Manchester United vs. Fulham (0:2). He is under serious question for the qualification game Bulgaria-Ireland next Sunday.
Assistant manager of Manchester United Mike Phelan said that the Bulgarian player has a swelling on his ankle and its condition will become clear as early as tomorrow morning
i just came on here to comment on berbatov's form, and i find out that he may be injured for the match.
take a look at these:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A48900530
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A48898075
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A48901548
he's playing extremely poorly for Manchester United and im not sure his injury is very good news.. considering they have a young hungry hardworking striker in popov to come in for him, or even bojinov if he is ready to start, compared to the lazy and out of form berbatov.