Ireland V Sweden(A) 22 March & Austria(H) - 26 March 2013 - World Cup 2014 Qualifiers

**paul_oshea** · 19/03/2013, 12:46 PM

Originally Posted by Junior

Its gonna be baltic as well, temperatures of -5 to -10 degrees.....

STOP press! It's going to be baltic in Scandinavia

**Junior** · 19/03/2013, 1:50 PM

Colder than average it would appear for this time of year.

http://www.holiday-weather.com/stockholm/averages/

Yer no Fred the weather man Paul, dont give up the day job........

**SwanVsDalton** · 19/03/2013, 1:52 PM

Apparently Paul Green lined up in the 'firsts' at training today, McCarthy in the seconds. 'Firsts' also had Clark at CB, McClean and Brady on the wings, Long and Robbie up front.

**back of the net** · 19/03/2013, 1:58 PM

Originally Posted by SwanVsDalton

Apparently Paul Green lined up in the 'firsts' at training today, McCarthy in the seconds. 'Firsts' also had Clark at CB, McClean and Brady on the wings, Long and Robbie up front.

http://balls.ie/football/tweets-from...p-in-malahide/

**paul_oshea** · 19/03/2013, 2:39 PM

Originally Posted by SwanVsDalton

Apparently Paul Green lined up in the 'firsts' at training today, McCarthy in the seconds. 'Firsts' also had Clark at CB, McClean and Brady on the wings, Long and Robbie up front.

Which one of you and Tets is going to be the first to defend that selection choice?

Mccarthy did sit out training yesterday though so perhaps he might be a slight doubt? Green actually played well against Poland in the second half, but it speaks volumes if we employ a system that accommodates Green, than a system that accommodates someone like McCarthy.

**Bungle** · 19/03/2013, 2:42 PM

Originally Posted by SwanVsDalton

Apparently Paul Green lined up in the 'firsts' at training today, McCarthy in the seconds. 'Firsts' also had Clark at CB, McClean and Brady on the wings, Long and Robbie up front.

If Green starts this game, then that would be the biggest howler that Trap has dropped us throughout his whole reign and there have been a few of them down the years. Green is very very mediocre while McCarthy is a class act. Having said that I'd be happy with Brady and McClean on the wings and Robbie and Long up front.

**paul_oshea** · 19/03/2013, 2:46 PM

I agree with that but I think I see the logic in it slightly, its quite attacking with long, keane, mclean and brady in the side, but what he wants then because of the 2 CBs not being his first choice CBs, is to give them some cover by employing two defensive midfielders, one for harrying and tackling and one for breaking up play. Why he picked Green and Whelan, I don't know. Ah no but McCarthy isn't a defensive midfielder really.

The thing is though as always, by doing one thing he completely negates the positive(side of his selection). By that I mean Keane and Long, mclean and brady are fairly attack minded, but if you have no bridge connecting the two - defence and attack - together then you get nothing, as we have seen many times before, and we revert to type - hoof long ball living off scraps that rarely gets us anything and cross fingers for a free or penalty or corner to give us some hope.

**IsMiseSean** · 19/03/2013, 2:56 PM

Originally Posted by Junior

Colder than average it would appear for this time of year.

As long as it's not raining/snowing then I'm happy out!

**Junior** · 19/03/2013, 2:56 PM

Originally Posted by paul_oshea

I agree with that but I think I see the logic in it slightly, its quite attacking with long, keane, mclean and brady in the side, but what he wants then because of the 2 CBs not being his first choice CBs, is to give them some cover by employing two defensive midfielders, one for harrying and tackling and one for breaking up play. Why he picked Green and Whelan, I don't know. Ah no but McCarthy isn't a defensive midfielder really.

McCarthy has given away possession cheaply in a few games for Wigan in dangerous areas, over the last few months. Only a few examples that I have seen on MOTD but it might be something as simple as that meaning Trap would trust Green before McCarthy in that role...

**SwanVsDalton** · 19/03/2013, 3:45 PM

Originally Posted by paul_oshea

Which one of you and Tets is going to be the first to defend that selection choice?

COYBCG (Come on you boys called Green).

Nah no chance I'd defend that to be honest. I agree with you regarding the logic of Trap playing with him, but it only works if Green has the discipline to sit in a bank of four - against Russia he kept trying to harry high up the pitch leaving big holes in behind. I don't think it would necessarily negate us going forward because, regardless of whether McCarthy plays, we'll hoof all day long, probably to Long in the channels. Trap don't need no link man when the ball flies over midfield non-stop.

A case could possibly be made for Green instead of Whelan, but even though Glenn's been abject in recent matches he's probably the only player in the squad who'll provide the defensive midfield cover you mentioned.

**Charlie Darwin** · 19/03/2013, 4:03 PM

Arguably Green's greatest achievement to date is convincing Trap that he has any sort of defensive instincts. He's an attacking player for his clubs, and quite a competent one as we saw with some nice passes against Poland, but for some reason Trap has decided there is some merit to having him in the headless chicken role in front of the back four.

**Fixer82** · 19/03/2013, 5:42 PM

Originally Posted by Bungle

McCarthy is a class act.

McCarthy hasn't proven to be a class act in the Premiership.
He has improved but he's a bit to go still. I wouldn't be clambering for him to start in the way I would for say Shane Long.
For me the best Irish midfielder out there is Darron Gibson but alas, he won't be playing under Trap.
I'd have Wes Hoolahan in ahead of McCarthy in midfield.

**ArdeeBhoy** · 19/03/2013, 7:16 PM

Originally Posted by JGKyne

As long as it's not raining/snowing then I'm happy out!

There's a good chance of it being both, well at least overnight...

**mark12345** · 19/03/2013, 7:58 PM

Originally Posted by DannyInvincible

It'll be broadcast live on the RT� Player, although that's Ireland-only. Otherwise, I'm sure plenty of streams will appear here on the day close to kick-off: http://www.lshunter.net/ or http://www.footballstreaming.info/st...nks/index.html

Thanks Danny

**ArdeeBhoy** · 19/03/2013, 9:01 PM

A whole load of associated match stories links via Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/20295...okmark_t=group

**Crosby87** · 19/03/2013, 9:06 PM

Trap says we can handle Zlatan.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/mar/18/giovanni-trapattoni-irish-zlatan-ibrahimovic

**ArdeeBhoy** · 19/03/2013, 9:53 PM

Yeah, he's on serious narcotics.

**tetsujin1979** · 20/03/2013, 10:04 AM

Doyle was disappointed to be told he wasn't going to be in the squad via text: http://www.wolves.co.uk/news/article...?pageView=full
Not sure what the issue is with being told with a text message is, Stephen Hunt was told before via text, and he had no problem with it

**ifk101** · 20/03/2013, 10:16 AM

Originally Posted by tetsujin1979

Not sure what the issue is with being told with a text message is

Really? You don't think a bit of courtesy could of be shown?

**tetsujin1979** · 20/03/2013, 10:29 AM

Originally Posted by ifk101

Really? You don't think a bit of courtesy could of be shown?

it's what he's done before to tell players they weren't going to be in the squad, and there were no complaints then
Stephen Hunt, Robbie Keane, Richard Dunne and Shay Given were all told this way before: http://www.ciarano.me/post/278497695...-as-he-defends

For the record, Hunt’s text reply read ‘Ok, no problem.”

But Trap was unimpressed at the line of questioning that sought to discover what players like Shay Given, Richard Dunne, Damien Duff, Robbie Keane and Hunt thought of being left out.
“I told them all on phone or by SMS,” he elaborated, “I spoke with Richard Dunne after Euro, and said ‘maybe for the friendly you can stay at home’, but I also told him I still needed him (for the future).
“I sent Shay an SMS 15 days before, and said I wanted to start, to see, the other goalkeeper. There was no problem.”