Sorry, I'll get back to discussing Dortmund and FFP.Originally Posted by Littlest Hobo
The big debate will be whole will actually start up front for us against Poland. Longs been injured, Keane hasnt been playing due to his season just finished, Walters in my opinion just isnt good enough, McGoldrick has been out injured as well, Doyle doesnt have it anymore and Stokes will probably not even make the bench. Looks like were gunna have to look to Sammon for knowledge
Tough team to predict. McGeady, Brady, Walters and Hoolahan into three spots is probably the tightest call. Think he'll go with the first three, and try to keep the game wide and stretched before turning to Wes later.
Good chance Clark might get in here, maybe for Ward.
-------------Forde-----------------
Coleman---O'Shea---Clark---Wilson
-------Whelan------McCarthy
McGeady--------------------Brady
------Walters--Keane------------
Ou-est le Centre George Pompidou?
That's something like what I would like to see. Harsh maybe on McClean, who hasn't been doing a lot wrong for us lately and whose attitude for us is great. Brady seems to be in decent form. McGeady is probably undroppable after Georgia away. I wouldn't mind seeing Whelan as one of two defensive midfielders as long as Hoolahan is in front of them to link things up. Hendrick mightn't be far off playing his way into the team either.
The emergence of Wilson and Coleman as ball-playing attacking full backs was about the only positive of the black hole that was Trap's last campaign and I think Wilson should stay a left back for us, particularly given the lack of other options and the fact that Clark/Delaney/whoever can probably slot in competently enough beside O'Shea.
It's also hard to read MON/RK's thinking on who or how we should play up front. The went with Keane alone up front v Germany away, when it probably would have made sense to have some physicality and ability to make the ball "stick" up front (i.e. one of Long or Walters) and Keane predictably had almost zero impact on the game, and then against Scotland away they went for the battering ram of Walters and Long when it probably (in advance and in hindsight too) would have made more sense to try to play some more ball (i.e. Hoolahan behind Keane or Long) against the more rugged Scots. It all doesn't make sense and they don't seem to know their best team.
That looks like three more deep-lying midfielders in a row to me, without a Hoolahan-like link up player a bit further forward.
The argument against Hoolahan seems to be that managers don't trust him and he is in and out of the team for Norwich, but plenty of lads have had indifferent club form and done heroic things in Irish jerseys over the years. We always look better with him in the team, and he presses and puts himself about enough for my eyes.
We really need to be winning this game. If we don't, 4th is looking a real possibility.
What I'd like to see....
---------------------------Westwood---------------------------
Coleman---------O'Shea---------------Clark---------------Wilson
--------------------McCarthy-------Gibson----------------------
---------------------------Hoolahan----------------------------
------------McGeady--------------------------Brady------------
----------------------------Keane------------------------------
Ideal sub options if nobody gets injured would be:
Long/Walters for Keane... no tiring defender would like to see either of them appear for the final twenty or so.
Hendrick for Hoolahan, who rarely plays ninety minutes anymore. At least he got a rare start last night and an inevitable assist.
McClean for Brady/McGeady... a Stephen Hunt type impact to give us a bit of energy.
I actually think we have the bones of a very good squad if MON uses the players the right way (i.e. my way).
For me, Whelan and Ward shouldn't really be options unless there's a bit of a crisis. They're both great pros and have served us well in terms of attitude, commitment and many adequate and semi adequate performances, but I feel we have a list of better options than both.
I'd only consider Whelan if three out of McCarthy, Gibson, Quinn and Meyler were unavailable.
Ahead of Ward I'd have converted centre backs in Wilson or Clark or a converted winger in Brady or possibly even McClean. I reserve the right to change my mind on the latter two who are obviously completely unproven.
Anyway the team will probably be...
Forde
Colaman-O'Shea-Wilson-Ward
McGeady-Whelan-McCarthy-McClean
Walters-Keane
Last edited by DeLorean; 25/02/2015 at 11:30 AM.
I think we have the bones of a good team too. Better than people think. Whelan is a conundrum. Never seems to do much, but is missed when absent. I can't figure him out. 18 months ago I was beyond my wit's end with him. Now I'm much less sure, and even think he might be necessary. Gibson and Hendrick didn't get hold of the game in Glasgow, McCarthy flatters to deceive in Green.
I have an inking O'Neill might go 3 at the back to allow bodies in midfield and two up front.
if whelan had played in scotland i believe we would have got at least a draw. ctre mid was a real problem that night
The best we could have expected Whelan to do in Glasgow would have been to help limit the Scots. That was the one thing we actually did fine without him, probably the only thing, bar the goal obviously, which was scored when Gibson was gone off. The system/tactics against Scotland was infuriating, depressing and majorly concerning, a far greater reason for the defeat than Whelan's absense, in my opinion.
When was he missed do you feel? He certainly wasn't missed in Stockholm or against Italy at Craven Cottage, probably our best two midfield performances in relatively recent times... maybe it's Paul Green or Meyler we've been missing?
I actually thought Gibson did his job pretty well in Scotland but, no, we didn't control midfield at all. Has Whelan ever controlled midfield though? It was ridiculous playing Hendrick in that role with the likes of Quinn available and one of the most baffling decisions MON has conjured up, along with McCarthy in the advanced role in Tblisi. That's what worries me most, does he know our players main attributes? You'd imagine he would have to and just made calls that didn't work out the way he expected.
If he's tempted to go three at the back I hope he's done his homework on Poland. If they have decent, quick wide players I think it would be a suicidal formation, but I don't really know too much about them.
Last edited by DeLorean; 25/02/2015 at 12:58 PM.
I'm not going to argue Whelan much with you because I struggle to see what he brings, except that - as I commented after Gelsenkirchen - he clogs up valuable opposition space. Also, as Stephen Hunt alluded to, he's a personality on the pitch, a talker.
Maybe the CM pairing in Glasgow was up against it from the start. I too was aghast at the approach to that game. I just have a feeling that had Whelan played we'd have come away nil-nil and everyone would be moaning about his lack of impact in a game!
Whatever the team is id really like to see Brady somewhere in there for me hes a class player that Ireland need right now. His free kick ability is great and exactly what we need if were going to compete with teams that are better than us. Clark for me deserves a chance as well if its on the left taking wards spot or if its in the middle next to O'Shea it doesnt matter, even tho Villa have been shaky at the back he seems to be playing solid at least.
Fair enough but I don't think there's much evidence to support your gut feeling, not that you're saying there is. If we'd conceded late in Sweden people might also have pointed to Whelan's absence, but we were obviously capable of seeing it out without him. We threw the match away in injury time a few days later with Whelan playing, he certainly didn't appear to do much talking, organising or closing down vital space in that scenario. I'm not blaming him or anything, I just think it's a pretty flimsy suggestion that we'd have had a better result if he was playing. Gibson going off would be a more credible factor for me, as we had looked pretty safe for the 70 minutes he was on the pitch.
Last edited by DeLorean; 26/02/2015 at 8:43 AM.
Is Nawalka going with Szczesny or Boruc in net? BC they both stink. We may have an advantage here chaps. Get word to the FAI.
Did he come under scrutiny for the space David Alaba of Austria enjoyed for that equalizer in Dublin ? Or shouldn't his position at least been such that the ten yard ball on the ground to Alaba wasn't available ?
He cleared a ball and was stuck on Alaba for a while before drifting off him (seemingly to try cover Weimann, or the space between both at once) only seconds before Alaba received the ball:
Jaysus, that's worse than being reminded of Paris.
At this moment in time, are everybody who are realistically in contention fit except for McGeady and McGoldrick?
Easy with hindsight but his original clearance should have been out for a throw in. At least that would have allowed us a chance to get organised again, aimlessly kicking it back to them only added to the frenzy.
If MON is to persist with the inexplicably indispensable Whelan, maybe he would he be tempted to do something similar to what Martinez did last night? I certainly think Whelan would be of more value and less exposed in this kind of a system and maybe something he'd be more used to at Stoke...
---------Goalkeeper--------
Coleman-O'Shea-Clark-Wilson
-----Whelan-McCarthy------
-----------Gibson-----------
McGeady------------McClean
-----------Striker-----------
Last edited by DeLorean; 27/02/2015 at 9:25 AM.
Aw, man. Sunday Times says Brady is set to miss the Poland game after picking up a "horrible calf injury" (Bruce) in training on Friday.Was hoping we'd get to see some of his set pieces and crosses.
That's a big blow after his performance against the US.
Clark deserves his chance, he's done well for Villa recently.
He's still making mistakes in games and has got away with them recently
These mistakes will be punished at International level, that said I wish him well and urge everyone to put bias and dislikes of players aside as we need positive results in the remaining games.
COYBIG!
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