Republic of Ireland V Oman - Tuesday, 11th September 2012 - Friendly - Fulham

[ArdeeBhoy]

Why is anyone surprised at this stage by a lack of change in team selection...

[Charlie Darwin]

First things first, we looked good no matter who the opposition was. Oman were obviously in friendly mode - i.e. they played some good stuff but they switched off, which Kazakhstan would never have done - but we exploited their weaknesses quite ruthlessly and really it would have been a hammering had they not had arguably the world's best shot-stoppers in goal (he's not so great from crosses though, as we discovered).

I think it's pretty clear that the position Trap hinted was up for grabs is left back, and of the two candidates I think Kelly probably shaded it, though Wilson can feel hard done by that we didn't play a good team. Nevertheless, I think Trap has unexpectedly been thrown a selection quandary by both Brady and Meyler, and of the two I think Meyler is more likely to start against Germany. I suspect we might end up with McCarthy/Whelan/Meyler in midfield with McGeady and Cox on the wings.

[DannyInvincible]

Trap says Brady won't start against Germany: http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/inter...y-in-deep-end/

Trapattoni said: "I have been asked whether players who play in friendlies will play in the qualifiers immediately after before and in the case of the game against Germany, the answer is no. Absolutely no.

"We need to play with the players who know the system and who know what they can do because the Germans are strong.

"They (the likes of Brady) can be in the squad but not in the team because we have the team that played in Kazakhstan. We have to have a team that is fit and strong mentally.

"At the moment maybe it's better to have Cox than others.

"I choose the players on the basis of the job ahead. Obviously there are players in the squad who are coming back like Richard Dunne and maybe Damien Duff."

[NeverFeltBetter]

Really wish this Damien Duff business would get put to bed.

[Murfinator]

Trap says Brady won't start against Germany: http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/inter...y-in-deep-end/

He's correct, getting swayed by a performance against a nothing team would be a ridiculously impressionable decision and show very low confidence in his selections.
Interesting though he mentions the Duff possibility a day after meeting with him, meaning the proposal wasn't flat out refused. It'd be a huge boost for us if we could get him back.

I think Trap has unexpectedly been thrown a selection quandary by both Brady and Meyler, and of the two I think Meyler is more likely to start against Germany. I suspect we might end up with McCarthy/Whelan/Meyler in midfield with McGeady and Cox on the wings.

I very much doubt Meyler is anywhere in the frame with all of Whelan, Andrews and McCarthy about. What might be realistic is he keeps his squad place over Gibson.

[Mr A]

Thought we looked decent but at the same time against weak opposition there were some worrying signs too. Simple passes misplaced and stupid frees given away that better opposition would have punished us for. Ant the back line looked pretty ropey at times too.

Cox sent for scans hopefully not too badly hurt.. awful pass from McGeady that lead to the challenge taking out the opposition for a wing slow maybe. (Joking BTW)

[Diarmo]

Really wish this Damien Duff business would get put to bed.

I agree. Duff will be 35 by the time WC 2014 rolls around. And it's insulting to our younger wingers that Trap and Tardelli keep making admiring glances towards him. As good as Duff is, it would be a step backwards in my opinion.

Having said that, we really missed his ability in possession and winning frees away to the Kazakhs.

[tetsujin1979]

Thinking back to the two players in central midfield last, was McCarthy playing the "Whelan" role of staying around the halfway line, breaking up play, receiving the ball and playing it forward, with Meyler playing the "Andrews" role a little further forward, pressuring the opposition midfield, and looking to shoot from distance?

[Stuttgart88]

Wweak opposition but I enjoyed the game.

I liked the way we were allowed to play a more fluent style.

Forde - not much to do
Coleman - decent and looks fluid at full-back but didn't impress enough to convince Trap I reckon
Wilson - very competent, confident on the ball and took this game in his stride while he was on
Sledge - got to every ball before his man, even when second favourite. Led the defence with authority. Nearly gave away a sucker penalty but it looked like a dive / fall from where I was
Kelly - nothing flash, just soundly competent
Meyler - happy to be on the ball and used it swiftly and efficiently. A bit too careless one a couple of occasions and followed up loose passes with lunge fouls which experienced Germans would ensure secured a booking. Very promising but Trap won't trust him unless it's a 3-man midfield.
McCarthy - similar to Meyler. Comfortable on the ball but seemed to play within his ability.
Keogh - missed great early chance and generally looked the least suited to this level.
Brady - very promising display. Very quick over short distances.
Long - beast of a player
Doyle - very good game

Notable others: for the short time he was played in position Cox looked very good, pro-active and direct. Not as good as Long but I'm happy we have him. I hope his injury wasn't bad (I've just logged in in an airport, I've read no papers).
Pearce: good at set-pieces. looked a bit Gary Doherty-like but worth another look for sure.

[Murfinator]

I agree. Duff will be 35 by the time WC 2014 rolls around. And it's insulting to our younger wingers that Trap and Tardelli keep making admiring glances towards him. As good as Duff is, it would be a step backwards in my opinion.

A step backwards to play our best player and only player who can actually retain possession? Ridiculous.
If we're serious about qualifying we need Duff, if we're not then we might as well ditch Trap and everyone over 30 and start planning for Euro 2016. Since we've only played 1 game and won it I would assume we're still serious about trying to qualify.

[Diarmo]

A step backwards to play our best player and only player who can actually retain possession? Ridiculous.
If we're serious about qualifying we need Duff, if we're not then we might as well ditch Trap and everyone over 30 and start planning for Euro 2016. Since we've only played 1 game and won it I would assume we're still serious about trying to qualify.

Within this 'system'. Several of our players are able to retain possession with their club sides, and there were good moments against Oman & Serbia.

Optimistically, I reckon that not having Duff around may expose how poor our current lineup is in possession, and may force Traps hand to adjust tactics/personnel. Like the way he dropped McGeady for Lawrence to keep possession on the right and counter the threat of Grosso/Evra.

[Diarmo]

Anyway, for some pointless and rambling player ratings.

Forde: Not a lot to do.

Coleman: Impressive running down the right hand side. Linked well with Brady and even cut inside. Bizarre seeing him in CM towards the end, but he acquitted himself well.
St. Ledger The usual. Solid at the back and threatened from set-pieces.
Kelly Did fine at CB, didn't really notice much of him at LB.
Wilson Assured in possession. Would start him instead of Ward.

Keogh I didn't really feel he offered much on the wing. Made a slightly better impression closer to goal, but I fear he's played out of loyalty than anything else.
Meyler Likes a tackle. But I'd worry about those needless free-kicks he gave away against a hardly imposing Oman midfield. Too raw to throw in against the Germans, but I'd give him another run out in the November friendly. Better than Whelan.
McCarthy Didn't impress me tonight. Must try to remember he's only 21, but I didn't see much to make me think he'll be a top player. However, did get on the ball more than most of the matches we play.
Brady Thought he looked great. Did run down a few blind alleys, but set piece delivery was top-notch. I'd chuck him in for Cox against ze Germans.

Long One of the things that impressed me about Long is his ability to come from deep. I remember him winning the ball in our own half against the Kazakhs and he continues to impress.
Doyle Nice goal.

Pearce Decent header for the goal. Not a bad debut.
Randolph Did fine. Shouts at defenders. Maybe left his line a bit early for the Oman goal.
McClean Good belter of a shot. Eclipsed by Brady.
Cox Did ok. Nothing to write home about.
McGeady
Joey O'Brien Decent in the two or three touches he had

[Jolly Red Giant]

One interesting point of note - there were more players attached to Premiership clubs playing against Oman than there were against Kazakhstan.

My assessment - V Kazakhstan - hoof the ball as long as possible and see it bounce all over the place on the astroturf. A dog with a mallet up his rear end would know that on astroturf you play the ball to feet. Once the Kazaks dropped their two central midfielders a little deeper after 5 minutes the hoofed ball was useless and we had no plan B.

My assessment - V Oman - the players on the pitch with a bit of skill actually passed the ball and the team played well. Long and Doyle are by far and away the best forward combination.

Against the Germans we will need someone in the middle who can pass the ball otherwise it will be a long night. Coleman should start at right-back - he is better than Kelly and much more effective going forward. And in relation to Duff - I think he can do a better job at left back than Ward and Wilson.

We have to get over the 'its the result that counts' stuff - its the performance that counts - if the performance is good enough then the results will match - if the performance is brutal then we will lose a lot more than we will win (or even draw).

The problem is that Trappatoni - he is stuck in the old arch right-wing conservative 1980s Italian philosophy and will not change. He brought stability to the team after Staunton but has now become a complete feter on its development and has to go.

[tricky_colour]

If you're as bewildered as me as to why we struggled with our best team against the lowly Kazakhs and yet beat Oman handily with a B team yesterday - Ramadan. The Oman players had just finished observing Ramadan and their fitness levels were not up to snuff according to their manager. Makes sense to me, the reason we played Oman at this time of year looks like a smart move from the FAI.

Well spotted, you are right about that, the Oman players have either not eaten all day or had just stuffed as much food as possible
into their bellies before the match, either way it certainly looked like one or the other, they were very poor they did not seem
to be at the races at all. Might also explain an improved second half.

[DannyInvincible]

Didn't Ramadan end nearly a month ago?

[NeverFeltBetter]

20th August I think.

Edit: Wikipedia says 18th- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramadan_(calendar_month)

[jbyrne]

20th August I think.

Edit: Wikipedia says 18th- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramadan_(calendar_month)

sure why let the facts stand in the way of someone trying to run down a decent enough Irish performance and win.

[Colbert Report]

I'm only repeating what the Oman manager said, he didn't say that it had ended that day, he said that it had "just recently" ended. Is three weeks enough to get back to full fitness after not eating or drinking during the day for a month during daylight hours?

[Charlie Darwin]

Athletes stay fit during Ramadan. It might not be ideal but with proper diet and exercise they should be exactly as they'd normally be. It's certainly no worse than the British and Irish players who spend their summers eating crap and drinking and then crash diet for pre-season.

[theworm2345]

Finally got to watch the match this morning...not much to say really as Oman were pretty weak but a decent enough performance and some nice goals. This is the kind of team we should be fielding in friendlies to look at young/new players.

Athletes stay fit during Ramadan. It might not be ideal but with proper diet and exercise they should be exactly as they'd normally be. It's certainly no worse than the British and Irish players who spend their summers eating crap and drinking and then crash diet for pre-season.

From personal experience, I can tell you athletes struggle mightily during Ramadan. I used to play on a Turkish team (we also had some West African Muslims) and I will tell you that during Ramadan we probably averaged at least one red card (which was not the norm) a game due to tempers being very thin and tired bodies and minds.