Giovanni Trappatoni - Well Done

[EastTerracer]

Who's going to the WC??

ha ha - that's not what you predicted though. In fact you stated definitively that France would win 3-0 on Wednesday and they never looked like doing that. You also said that Trapattoni would play anti-football but we haven't seen you retract that yet. Welcome back nonetheless.

[irishultra]

It's pretty clear what Dolan's game is.

The bigger the success Trapattoni is, the angrier Pat Dolan appears to get. I say appears because I don't read what he says and never saw him on the telly but he sounds like he's lost the plot.

Dolan seems to believe he and his fellow LOI managers could manage the Irish national team. What a joke. If these managers were truely good enough they would be making millions abroad.

A succession of the best LOI managers tried their luck in recent years in Scotland and England and all were abysmal failures and that was lower level clubs in England and Scotland.

If Ireland qualified for the WC and did well Dolan would just get angrier and angrier. The day anyone heeds what Dolan has to say about football will be a sad day indeed.

A manager is a manager. Its a damning inditement of our national mentality if players won't respect a LOI manager. Any LOI manager that guides his team to league titles and progression in Europe should definetly be considered for any Irish job.

[Emmet7]

Trapattoni has won 23 major trophies in Europe and been a manager at the highest level for 35 years. If he was not a good manager over a consistant period, he would now be managing a lower division team somewhere.

23 major European trophies against a few LOI titles. Who do you think is better qualified.

Roddy Collins and the Derry manager went to England and Scotland and both were considered top LOI managers. They flopped over there. Pat Fenlon would flop too as Irish manager, and he would be laughed at by the Irish players in any case.

The LOI is probably the equivalent of League 1 or 2 in England. Would you have a manager from there manage the Irish team?

[Reality Bites]

A manager is a manager. Its a damning inditement of our national mentality if players won't respect a LOI manager. Any LOI manager that guides his team to league titles and progression in Europe should definetly be considered for any Irish job.

Cannot agree with this - ridiculous comment...you need to be consistently managing at a very high level if you can me considered for Irish Job (Kerr and Staunton have we not learned)...Traps managing of Juventus , Inter Milan, Bayern Munich and Italys national team speaks volumes, all due respects to Pat Fenlon he has never managed anywhere near the same level of players or dealt with similar pressures or different tactical scenarios so he should never be even short listed for Future Irish position unless of course he upgrades CV

[Strongbow10]

thats quality. me and too makes were there when the bloke took that photo too!

Dolan was pretty sound I have to say

[irishultra]

A high level like Mick McCarthy and Jack Charlton?

[Razors left peg]

A high level like Mick McCarthy and Jack Charlton?

At least they both played at the highest level, in Charltons case won a world cup

[drummerboy]

Traps next mission is to blood a few new players in the friendlies before the European Championship quallifiers start next season. First and foremost is a left full. Delaney isn't good enough and never will be. The only player I can think of is Stephen Ward, who is recovering from injury, he is back in light training so hopefully he will start back in.

Other players who deserve a look at is
Marc Wilson (Portsmouth)
Chris McCann (Burnley) when he recovers from injury
Owen Garvan (Ipswich)
Andy Keogh (Wolves) up front

[SkStu]

Trapattoni has won 23 major trophies in Europe and been a manager at the highest level for 35 years. If he was not a good manager over a consistant period, he would now be managing a lower division team somewhere.

23 major European trophies against a few LOI titles. Who do you think is better qualified.

Roddy Collins and the Derry manager went to England and Scotland and both were considered top LOI managers. They flopped over there. Pat Fenlon would flop too as Irish manager, and he would be laughed at by the Irish players in any case.

The LOI is probably the equivalent of League 1 or 2 in England. Would you have a manager from there manage the Irish team?

Steve Staunton or Pat Fenlon? Who would you pick Emmet?

[BigmanCas]

Now the Dust has settled, I think its time to thank the manager who despite all the criticism from small men like Dunphy and Curtis proved himself to be a brillant appointment, Trap was cruelly denied a place in World cup with a Team which was very much moulded in his philosphy of the game and we should remember a Team that was in tatters after the Kerr and Staunton eras.

Keith Andrews and Glenn Whelan were hero's on Wednesday night who prospered through Traps belief in these players and the system they were playing in. 18 months ago who had heard of Keith Andrews, now he will live long in the memory as a hero of Stade de France. Sport isn't always Fair but we should be very pleased this man is managing us for the Euro Qualifiers.

I agree 100%

[elroy]

Also fair play to Denis O'Brien, football in this country doesnt have too many benefactors but it was good of him to step in not once but twice and as a result we have a WC manager. Look at Scotland for example and their search for a manager, nowt too exciting showing up there. We've done well to get Trap. He has done well for us. Progress all round to date and almost almost success as well.

I particulary liked how he mentioned at the press conference the other day that his dream is to lead Ireland to the WC in 2014 to erase the France nightmare.

[gustavo]

At least they both played at the highest level,

So did Staunton

[dr_peepee]

Trapattoni: The metaphor that springs to my mind is that of a student taking an exam. He could have done more during the year, maybe he left out some parts of the course, some of his homework was late and maybe his performance in class was a bit uninspiring at times, but in the big exam he was very well prepared and just missed out on the highest mark.

Stan on the other hand attended every lecture & tutorial and was an enthusiastic student but flunked the exam badly.

Excellent anaology. If I could take it a little further. Lets say the student is at a very expensive private college that his family are busting their balls off in very tough times to pay for. Would said family not be justifyibly ****ed, if in the face of their efforts he was skiving off classes and not completing CA's, knowing that the talented little poindexter is dangerously relying solely on his cappacity to sit exams to get him through??

I'm delighted with the leaps made under Trapp. But with a little more or even redirection of effort during his tenure I don't think Gibson would have been the best midfielder on the bench in Paris, or Keogh the best right sided midfeilder in the sqaud in Bari (esp given the performance of Lawrence since he came in). The focus (Or reliance) on consistency is counter productive in a playing pool as limited as ours.

[Razors left peg]

So did Staunton

I was more talking about Pat Fenlon really, but to be honest I dont even believe that not playing at the highest level should matter. It hasnt mattered to the likes of Wenger.Im a League Of Ireland fan but as Ive said before with players, its not a high enough standard of league to prepare a player or manager for international football. It just annoys me that some people are overly critical of Trapattoni while saying that Fenlon is some sort of genius(he might well be, but he needs to do more than win a league of Ireland to prove it)

[weldoninhio]

ha ha - that's not what you predicted though. In fact you stated definitively that France would win 3-0 on Wednesday and they never looked like doing that. You also said that Trapattoni would play anti-football but we haven't seen you retract that yet. Welcome back nonetheless.

Ok i was wrong about 3-0, but as many posters in here have pointed out to me when i was critical of Traps "style" of play in the qualifiers, its the result that counts. If we can go to paris and play like that, why have we spent the entire qualifying campaign trying to nick a goal from a set piece and then sitting back and trying to defend it??

[EastTerracer]

Ok i was wrong about 3-0, but as many posters in here have pointed out to me when i was critical of Traps "style" of play in the qualifiers, its the result that counts. If we can go to paris and play like that, why have we spent the entire qualifying campaign trying to nick a goal from a set piece and then sitting back and trying to defend it??

They did play a very similar game for an hour in Bari (I know it was against 10 men but the Italians would probably have sat back on a 1-0 lead anyway). I just get the feeling that Trapp thinks playing like that is somehow reckless and he will only let the team off the leash when they have nothing to lose. Like everyone I'd love him to change his approach but I get the feeling he won't change tactics that easily.

[gunner63]

am i missing something in the aftermath of henrys shenanigans, but in all the coverage i have listened to and read we have been told several times that the referees decision is final and nothing will change his decisions made during the match. so how come tv coverage can be used to either enforce or rescind red and yellow cards afterwards, or this under another set of rules?

[Cosmo]

Traps next mission is to blood a few new players in the friendlies before the European Championship quallifiers start next season.

I'd be very disappointed if he didnt include players that can change a match for us (like andy reid) in the squads.

He obviously brought alot of organisation to the team and gave them alot of belief - dont mind it being boring to watch, as its a results business - and his first 11 is hard to argue with.

Though he should really let the team have a go at teams more before its too late - and should be including players in the squad that can help change the match (id also include delap in the squad - not a bad player and his throws would be very beneficial in the last few minutes if were chasing a goal).

If he doesnt let the players have a go or try to change matches, we can look forward to another group of only beating 2 poor teams

Also looking forward to seeing more of noel hunt in the euros campaign.

[hunt4the]

Trap has done an unbelievable job when you consider the absolute mess we were in. I would go so far as to say if we had qualified for the world cup it would be the greatest managerial achievement we've ever had when you consider the players jack had and the players (non-players steve england etc..) trappatoni has had. He's really brought the buzz back around the national team. I put the crap atmosphere for the last couple of years partly down to croke park, but the atmosphere at the Italy and France matches was as good as ever I remember in Landsdowne and its all thanks to trappatoni. hats off to the man

[dr_peepee]

Trapp was apparently at the Portsmouth Burnley game, and the Sunderland Fulham game on Sunday. 10 months before the next competitive game. Credit where it's due and all...