Might as well give it a thread.
Who are we hoping to see ?
Surely Cullen anyway, O'Dowda, Curtis & Travers also maybe ?
Randolph is the only capped keeper in the squad - and, at 32, the youngest capped keeper we have - so wouldn't say no to Travers and O'Hara getting a half each.
Wouldn't really change more than 3 of the outfield players I think; don't see the point in making 8/9 changes and suddenly it becomes a B international. And it'd obviously be handy for the likes of Stevens, O'Dowda, Hourihane, etc to get a bit more experience if they're going to be regulars for the rest of the campaign.
I’d go 4-2-3-1 with something like (based on our squad)...
Travers
Christie
Egan
Duffy
Coleman
Cullen
Hourihane
O’Dowda
McGoldrick
Curtis
Collins
I'd agree with Pineapple more than Sk of the Stus. There's little to be learned by putting out a B team. Swap out the keeper, maybe a defender or a winger to look at alternatives, and someone in for Whelan to look at options there.
You can't spell failure without FAI
Pffft... that’s just the UCD alliance.Originally Posted by John83
It's not my fault if you Stus can't agree on anything.
You can't spell failure without FAI
A pity the 21s have a crucial match next week. Would be great for a few lads on the fringes of their senior sides to get a run. Knight, Collins, Parrott, Connolly and Molumby would be a nice group to push up.
Building a good cohesion for the games next month and going forward should be the key for this one. Slight changes but nothing massive. I’d like to see :
Travers
Coleman Duffy Egan Stevens
Hendrick Cullen Browne
ODowda Hogan McClean
That back 4 has the potential to play for the next 4 years together, barring Stevens upcoming suspension.
Hendrick will permanently be part of our plans and needs game time in a dynamic box to box role, similar to Browne who hasn’t had much of a chance at international level. Cullen needs to be introduced as a potential replacement for Whelan going forward, considering James McCarthy is missing.
Front three picks itself given the players missing from the squad. McClean is in the same bracket we Hendrick as a player who will always be picked, so the more himself and Stevens play together the better
Why not Jack Byrne? We could do with a midfield player who can do what Hendrick can do, but more.
That's a silly comment really until he can do what you think he can do at a level Hendrick has and is playing at i.e. PL and international.
Hendrick is playing very little at EPL level is he? his toolbox is limited and his prognosis at that level is not great. It’s just a friendly with Bulgaria, as tepid as it gets and a good opportunity for Jack for 45mins or so.
McGoldrick out no ?
I would be in the continuity camp on this one, look at three, four max positions over the 90, positions where the guys in the squad have no game time mostly. Keep working on the fledgling systems Mick is trying to bring to the table whereby we actually try to keep the football finally.
Yeah posted that before McG was ruled out. Hendrick (or Byrne) in his place.
I agree with some of what you are saying Crafty but at the same time the manager should also want to see what his fringe players can do in a real game.
I don’t see any reason to play Stevens in this one given he is suspended for Georgia and we need to evaluate a contingency at lb. it would be nice to see whether Egan can play well in a back 4. Perfect game to blood Cullen and to see what Collins and Travers can do. With Robbo also out, he will need to change there anyway (he’ll likely start Judge there). I don’t like McClean so I’ve dropped him for Curtis (or O’Dowda).
If I was the manager, I’ve had 5 games now with the same starting core, more or less. I know what the starters can do in a game and would now be looking to experiment with the starting 11 and see what the others are bringing to the party.
It would probably not make sense to mess with the formation too much alright if he has landed on a 4141/433. I just like the look of us in a 4231 based on our playing pool and the way the U21s are set up to play under Kenny.
I was in UCD and also agree with the pineapple variety.
Stevens is suspended for Georgia. Might warrant another left back, but I think he could do with some more international game time. Browne, Byrne, Curtis and O'Dowda could do with some time on the pitch but for the most part this should be a dry run for Georgia away.
In an ideal world this friendly might have some meaning, but now that we have experienced the Nations League I'm in a despair about its value in the scheme of things. I think at best this friendly is a mere inconvenience, same as that friendly v Iceland. Completely worthless at this stage to the endevours and requirements of the qualifying campaign. A friendly arranged after a competitive qualifier is a B team game, a reserve kick around.
Mick would have to go with his default formation and observe how a fringe player settle in, otherwise its totally futile. There's no point in trying out a 3 5 1 with fringe players.
I just dont get this. We might need parrot in one of those away play off games for example. He could easily have played premier league football by then too
But it would be hard to give him a debut in a competitive game of that nature
Play him on Tuesday and have a look
https://www.thesun.ie/sport/football...garia-ireland/
I don't see what there is to get? Parrott hasn't started a senior club game yet, to promote him ahead of Connolly or Idah would make no sense to me.
I think Connolly is the man to move up. He has played now against the PL champions. He looks excellent at under 21 level. His run and assist was something we could only dream about McClean producing. He's small but he's built like a tank for a 19 year old forward. Given that he's more naturally or preferably a 9, I'm not sure if he has the defensive nous to play in Mick's team but he should be given a chance now to jump into a friendly and see how he can balance defence and attack.
Promote connolly as well. It's simple "to get" we need goals. We have lost two strikers too injury. Let's have a look at them on Tuesday
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