QuoteStill not really able to engage in an actual point there, I see...
Why do you think Bazunu kept the score down against Greece? Given I've put out plenty of counter arguments (which acknowledge that he played quite well)
Bazunu could be Real Madrids keeper one day, Kelleher at Notts County and Pineapple will still be saying that Kelleher is better. I get his ma broke up with you years ago dude but don't carry the grudge over to the young fella
Still not really able to engage in an actual point there, I see...
Why do you think Bazunu kept the score down against Greece? Given I've put out plenty of counter arguments (which acknowledge that he played quite well)
I watched the game, he make good saves at a time we were under massive pressure, hence keeping us in the game. Not every save has to be Gordon Banks level to be important. I feel like I have to say this to you a lot... its not that complicated.Originally Posted by pineapple stu
But he only made one particularly good save; the rest were routine enough. You'd have been annoyed had he let any of them in like. Again, compare it to the Swedish keeper's performance in Austria last night for what I would class as a keeper keeping the score down.
I think your hyper optimism is unhelpfully elevating a solid performance into a spectacular one. (I feel like I have to say this to you a lot...)
But the point Stu is that any praise for Bazunu from you always seems to be qualified or through gritted teeth.
As a (fellow) ex-keeper I’m very focused on the relationship between defenders and keeper and the keeper’s attitude, body language etc.
I posted over a year ago that Kelleher looks far more confident for Liverpool than he did in his early outings but Bazunu doesn’t yet look like he believes he belongs in the PL, and nor does it look like he is fully trusted by his defence. (nothing changed when McCarthy came in btw).
But for Ireland Bazunu looks the part. He’s at home in the Irish jersey and he’s fully in tune with his defence. He didn’t do anything miraculous in Greece but he was rock solid which puts all doubts to rest imho. And his distribution against Gibraltar was very good too.
When there are doubts about a kid based on his club form but he dispels those doubts for Ireland I think that’s noteworthy in itself.
The fact that you’ve really latched on to this “he saved us in Greece” thing rather than just letting it go really suggests you just don’t like him.
We might be overanalyzing it at this point stu. A keeper playing well does keep you in the game.....In the first 15 minutes he made one great save which did literally keep the score down. You agree with that so is it really that hard to say he kept us in the game? I still think it was 2 very good pieces of goalkeeping, particularly while everyone else was falling to pieces. If he'd lost the head and gone the same way we'd have been toast by halftime. Most seem to agree with that I think? It wasn't his best game for Ireland and it wasn't spectacular but we were so bad that him playing well was absolutely critical.....we still lost so it's a bit odd to be discussing Bazunu over other things. But it's foot.ie and we do love a GK debate.
Thought Collins was poor particularly during that period. The goal is boosting his rating of course but he made 2 or 3 really bad decisions. If Bazunu had done the same we'd have lost by more than one.
21 leagues and 25 cups.
I always think it's a bit unsual to be analysing (to this extent) the performances in the one position in which we are truly blessed with quality.
Ask yourself what a higher level of competition is. The LoI cup final or an u-21 friendly match between Wales and Scotland. I promise I'm not winding anyone up here, but I find it amazing how some people seem to think that Bohemians or Shamrock Rovers are only a couple of good signings away from winning the Champions League. Sixteen cup finals? Is this guy for real?
How many cup finals in professional football have you managed in ?
None. I'm not going around telling people how great I am because I scored a few goals against female players, either. I'd be laughed at for doing so.
There must be some obscure manager who has racked up dozens of Cup wins in places like the Faroe Islands or Greenland. I wonder why Premier League clubs don't go after those highly decorated managers?
I'm not comparing the LoI to the Faroe Island or Greenland domestic leagues, if they even have them, but we have to be realistic about what kind of clubs Stephen Kenny has managed, and what kind of opposition he has managed against. By every metric, the League of Ireland is a poor league. It has a poorer UEFA ranking than Moldova and Azerbaijan.
I was willing to give Stephen Kenny a chance, especially after the Portugal match where we almost won. I really just don't get why so many on here are willing to stick with him. John Delaney was smarter than he looked, he knew you people were easy to manipulate.
If they LOI is as bad as you make it out to be, getting Dundalk to just qualify for the group stages of the Europa League must be up there with the greatest achievements of any manager in history.
It was an incredible achievement and I take nothing away from Stephen Kenny. He's a lovely guy, and I think the LoI is his level. I hope he goes back there and leads another club into Europe. I just don't feel he's shown that he's capable of managing at the international level. The away match to Greece was only 2-1, but we all know that it could have, and should have, been much worse. We weren't in it at all.
Ya see, if you kept your criticism genuine like that I'd have little argument. Comparing the LOI to your Co-Ed games just makes you look like you're intentionally just trying to wind people up. Keep that sh1t for Twitter
Alright, neutral corners you two.
"I find it amazing how some people seem to think that Bohemians or Shamrock Rovers are only a couple of good signings away from winning the Champions League"
I'd love to see some evidence to back that claim up to be honest. I've been following the league for a long time and I've never met one, single person who would think that let alone say it. The poster in question has a pretty long history of trying to wind up Irish football supporters and it has gone beyond tiresome.
21 leagues and 25 cups.
Fair point, I was being hyperbolic. That said, I do think that many LoI fans, especially the ones on here, greatly overestimate the quality of the players in their league. Normally this would be no problem, but it has bled into the national team. Never again can we allow someone like John Delaney to gain enough power to be able to make such a ridiculous appointment. Years from now we're going to look back on this period of Irish football and agree that Stephen Kenny did us no good at all.
On a side note, Stephen Kenny's been banging on about how many players he has given international debuts to. This would be like Steve Staunton taking credit for capping Joey Lapira.
See, when you give up the LoI bashing you actually make a bit of sense.
I'd still disagree with you on certain points but at least it doesn't come across as a windup. The LoI has provided multiple players to the current national side. They wouldn't appreciate you calling it a pub league and neither do people like myself who follow and support the league and frankly, know more about it than you seem to.
I do agree that John Delaney types should obviously never hold that amount of power BUT I'd disagree that Kenny wasn't a reasonable appointment at the time. Not handled well but I was OK when it happened. Only OK mind you. It's not as if he came out of the LoI with a completely flawless record snd most Rovers fans would have been against the appt.
I do think it's time for a change but that shouldn't mean we can't look to the LoI for future managers or players. Kenny just couldn't make the step up. Others will be able to.
I do also agree that he shouldn't tout the caps so much as he does. He was always going to have to cap players because we had no other choice. Although capping Johnston is one I'd give him some credit for. I'm not sure other managers would have gone after that one.
Last edited by ontheotherhand; 22/06/2023 at 2:53 AM.
21 leagues and 25 cups.
Not fair at all. There’s a big difference between the caps that SK has handed out in the last two years and their long term value than there was with the Joey Lapira, Joe O’Cearruil, Joe Gamble days of Staunton. He must’ve had a thing for Joe’s actually!! Most, if not all, of the caps SK has handed out will be part of our set up for years to come.
Typical that we'd disagree in the leadup to the derby.....but I see your point while also agreeing with CR to an extent. I don't think Kenny should be talking so much about bringing the players through....he had to do that. It's a positive of his tenure but I think most managers would have done it so it's hardly going to save his job. Like nobody was going to ignore Ferguson and keep calling up Scott Hogan....
21 leagues and 25 cups.
I’m not defending him, just trying to be fair to him. It is to his credit but it also doesn’t need to be overplayed. I was just pointing out to CR that you can’t reasonably say the caps Kenny has handed out are no better than those handed to Lapira et all. It actually detracts from his overall point and comes across needlessly petty/bitter…
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