Republic of Ireland V Latvia - Wednesday, 22nd March 2023 - Friendly

[tetsujin1979]

That tweet doesn't show up for me. anyone else?

works for me. You at work?

[Kingdom]

works for me. You at work?

Noooooo, yes.

[Eirambler]

In the midst of all this, Latvia announced their squad last week, but I don't think I know any of their players.
Average age is 26, average of 24 caps each, and 56 goals across the squad
By comparison the Ireland squad's average age is 25, with an average of 20 caps, and 34 goals in total in the squad

https://lff.lv/zinas/14678/pazinots-...irija-un-velsa

No idea who any of them are, other than Marian Pahars on the coaching staff. Come to think of it I honestly don't think I know the name of a single other Latvian footballer other than him. I think there might have been a Latvian player signed by Arsenal once as a result of a training ground joke, but I can't think of his name (and he may not even have been Latvian!).

[joey B]

In the midst of all this, Latvia announced their squad last week, but I don't think I know any of their players.
Average age is 26, average of 24 caps each, and 56 goals across the squad
By comparison the Ireland squad's average age is 25, with an average of 20 caps, and 34 goals in total in the squad

https://lff.lv/zinas/14678/pazinots-...irija-un-velsa

Raivis Jurkovskis was at Dundalk a couple of years ago,no one apart from that….

[Kingdom]

A friend of mine, her son (step-son maybe) is a CB who is a part-timer with Mechelen 17s I think. She was telling me back in Sept that he was invited to join the Latvian U21s squad back in September. She said he isn't very good. Mnetioned him to my young lad who had been in school with him in Bruxelles and he concurred that he wasn't very good. Nice lad, big, strong, but more a basketballer.

[SkStu]

Edit, saw on the mobile. Interesting. Imagine it's just le Figaro sh!t-stirring (hopefully not).

Its all mind games. We have them running scared.

[zero]

Mick McCarthy left the Irish senior squad perfectly set up for someone to come in? Are you on a wind-up? I'm not sure we could even say that he had the team playing better than MoN's end of tenure horridness. Mick McCarthy was offered a job he shouldn't have been offered on good money. He had one mission - to qualify for the Euro's and he failed. He failed from the first moment of his first match in charge. It's an oft-repeated comment from me, but that's because it's relevant. He allowed, into a gale-force wind, in Gibraltar, to allow us to try and muscle and hoof them off the pitch. and it didn't work because we were ****€ and our tactics were ****€. We were blessed to win and should have gone behind only for a wonder save from Randolph.

Yet we won the game. How do you think it would have turned out had Kenny been in charge? All the evidence points towards dropped points and SK making a list of excuses. Struggling against the lower seeded teams has been a hallmark of his time in charge.

I would rate McCarthy's second stint at a 5/10. Kenny so far maybe a 2/10.

[tetsujin1979]

FWIW a friend was at the game in Gibraltar, he was amazed that, between the wind and the pitch, any kind of football was played.

[Stuttgart88]

That's true. We were pretty brutal at home too though.

[tetsujin1979]

Kenny confirms in press conference today that Ferguson will start V Latvia tomorrow night

[BOOMSHAKALAKA]

Mick McCarthy left the Irish senior squad perfectly set up for someone to come in? Are you on a wind-up? I'm not sure we could even say that he had the team playing better than MoN's end of tenure horridness. Mick McCarthy was offered a job he shouldn't have been offered on good money. He had one mission - to qualify for the Euro's and he failed. He failed from the first moment of his first match in charge. It's an oft-repeated comment from me, but that's because it's relevant. He allowed, into a gale-force wind, in Gibraltar, to allow us to try and muscle and hoof them off the pitch. and it didn't work because we were ****€ and our tactics were ****€. We were blessed to win and should have gone behind only for a wonder save from Randolph.

This was the side from the final match at home vs Denmark.
23 Randolph (GK)
2 Doherty
3 Stevens
4 C Duffy
5 Egan
6 Whelan
Hendrick
8 Browne
Hourihane
9 McGoldrick
11 McClean

Subs
1 O'Hara (GK)
16 Travers (GK)
7 Maguire
10 Brady
12 Robinson
15 K. Long
17 Clark
18 J. Byrne
19 Judge
20 Cullen
21 Parrott
22 J. Collins

Of that experienced final squad, it was so experienced, that 4 of them have been shot as they were that old. Of the others, either their careers have plummetted, they aren't playing at all, or they just weren't up to standard.
We are talking and have been talking about blooding League 1 players that aren't exactly 17/18 to try and come up with some sort of coherent attacking squad. At no point in our past have we been this low on options. You and others are using the analogy that today's Irish Championship players are yesteryears Irish Premier League players - that's total bullocks, no matter what way you dress it up. And even if it wasn't, and I'm not willing to concede that point, given how much bullocks it is, but lets say that is the case, we still aren't replacing championship players with championship players, we are dipping into League 1 for squad options.

David McGoldrick was often Ireland's centre midfield, Ireland's playmaker and Ireland's striker at the same time. As a result we were constantly breaking down positive play, as Ditsy was usually directing it from deep with nobody in front of him to link with.
That's either how bad the tactics were, or the players were. If Mick had continued on, we'd still be waiting for Josh Cullen to be a regular. Our poor-performing (career-wise) youngsters are now fully blooded into international football. There's no awe anymore for Parrott, Connolly, Cullen, Molumby, O'Shea, Collins, Kelleher, Knight, Ogbene, Bazunu, Omabamidele. Kenny did that - there's nothing to say that any other manager would have done that. The squad is in a better place now to push forward, whether that is with Kenny or not. The core rebuilding is done.

Look at the managers before Kenny.
McCarthy - McGoldrick
ONeill - Robbie Brady/John Walters
Trappatoni - Robbie Keane/Damien Duff/Aiden McGeady
Kerr - Robbie Keane/Damien Duff

This is the first Ireland manager that I can remember who doesn't have a natural established/experienced outfield 'out' card to focus his team around. It's undeniable. If you have a squad - in entirity where not one players is a core part of their club side in a offensive manner - it's beyond debilitating. and that's what we had for the best part of the last couple of years. It was Callum Robinson for a short while for Kenny, but the lad is not even consistently playing club football, or scoring.

So I do not accept that this is all Kenny's fault. I accept that is the fault of the FAI who instead of pushing financial resources into youth and domestic football to try and be proactive about the long-term, they pushed money into the hands of managers who by and large couldn't give a fook about Ireland, and who weren't exactly cream of the crop at the moment of their appointments, in order to sate the short-term hard-ons of 'fans' who only give a **** about the big occasion.
Why I'm happy Kenny is still in a job, is that it finally means the FAI are looking at the coffers, and realise we don't have the money to splurge our way out of this nadir with zero guarentee of anything especially given our playing resources, but that splurge would absolutely endanger the good work finally being done underage (meagre and all that it is).
If it takes an extra campaign, I don't care. I'll gladly sacrifice it, if it means that we're in a better position to qualify for more tournaments more consistently, whether that is with Kenny or not.

It was perfectly set up for the next manager coming in after McCarthy because his reign was quite poor but we still came very close to qualification. Please read what I'm saying, not what you think I'm saying. After McCarthy and a few previous campaigns, supporters and more importantly, the players were crying out to be allowed express themselves on the field. If a good manager comes on board at this stage with access to an experienced squad with hugely exciting youngsters coming through, they would have been flying. Unfortunately we ended up with Kenny instead of a good manager.

Of the 15 players you highlighted from the last Denmark match squad, Kenny had all of them available to him except Glenn Whelan. He had McGoldrick! You're on a mad rant and not making much sense. McGoldrick played 14 times for Ireland and scored 1 goal. Cullen made his big improvements when he moved to Anderlecht. Kenny had the benefits of this along with the return of Obefami and the breakthroughs of those players you mention Molumby, O'Shea, Collins, Kelleher, Knight, Ogbene, Bazunu, Omabamidele. McCarthy had a midfield of Whelan, Hourihane and Hendrick for comparison. And he introduced Parrott and Connolly for your information.

The senior managers job is to get the most out of what he has available to him and Kenny hasn't come anywhere near that. I don't think that is up for debate. Underage development is a huge issue but Kenny has nothing to do with that anymore. Dropping us down the rankings won't help though. You're talking about not wanting the FAI to waste money but fail to realise that they have wasted a large amount of money on Stephen Kenny. Not only on his salary but the failed qualification campaigns have cost us much needed financial resources. It's been a disaster. We'll be in a better position to actually compete for qualification when Kenny goes and we get someone competent in charge.

[ontheotherhand]

Great news on Ferguson.

I'd like to see us go back to 4 3 3 for this. You'd be comfortable enough with Coleman and McClean getting forward to play right and left of midfield when we have the ball and allowing Knight to make his runs past the front 3.

-------------Bazunu
Coleman Collins Egan McClean
---Molumby Cullen Knight
---Ogbene Ferguson Obafemi

Give that 45 minutes and then bring in Parrot, Sykes and Smallbone. Cullen needs to be protected but I don't see anyone in the squad who I know can do that job well enough. Maybe try pushing Collins into midfield for 20 or 30 minutes of the second half. That won't happen but I'd like to see it.

[backstothewall]

Kenny confirms in press conference today that Ferguson will start V Latvia tomorrow night

Does Kenny ever get anything right? He shouldn't be anywhere near the pitch tomorrow

Absolute certainty that he pick's up an injury and misses Monday playing a stupid game that's only significant to one desperate man .

[Jd2793]

Does Kenny ever get anything right? He shouldn't be anywhere near the pitch tomorrow

Absolute certainty that he pick's up an injury and misses Monday playing a stupid game that's only significant to one desperate man .

id wager you'd have been moaning if he hadnt played with a reactionary comment like that. the only guy who shouldnt be on the pitch tomorrow is cullen given he has clocked up 4k minutes this season. ferguson has rarely completed a 90, 60 mins under his belt will do him no harm tomorrow.

[Razors left peg]

Does Kenny ever get anything right? He shouldn't be anywhere near the pitch tomorrow

Absolute certainty to pick up an injury and miss Monday.

Kenny has 100% got this right. Ferguson is a football player, he should play football. You cant baby him and not even let him train in case he gets injured. He has never started a game for Ireland so its no harm to get the nerves of his 1st start out of the way, and also he will get used to playing with the other players.

Kenny gets hammered for his team selections often enough, by me too, for picking what we think in the wrong team, picking his best striker to play a game isnt effing one of them.

Every single Ireland fan going to that game tomorrow will be buzzing to see Ferguson and would be disappointed if he didnt play

[zero]

Kenny has 100% got this right. Ferguson is a football player, he should play football. You cant baby him and not even let him train in case he gets injured. He has never started a game for Ireland so its no harm to get the nerves of his 1st start out of the way, and also he will get used to playing with the other players.

Kenny gets hammered for his team selections often enough, by me too, for picking what we think in the wrong team, picking his best striker to play a game isnt effing one of them.

Every single Ireland fan going to that game tomorrow will be buzzing to see Ferguson and would be disappointed if he didnt play

Agreed - I'd be annoyed if he plays the full 94/95 mins but absolutely give him 60 / 65 mins. My main concern re Ferguson is that Kenny will misuse him by isolating him up front, he needs game time to work out how best to use his talents.

[backstothewall]

Every single Ireland fan going to that game tomorrow will be buzzing to see Ferguson and would be disappointed if he didnt play

Factually incorrect. There's at least one person going tomorrow who will be disappointed to see him play. But I'd wager there will be a lot more than me walking down London Bridge Road tomorrow who think this is mind-numbing stupidity.

It isn't just the question of injuries.

Friendlies are worthwhile to bed in new systems or try players in different roles, but there's nothing to be learned here. He's going to be our #1 forward for the foreseeable future barring injury or a truly special talent emerging out of nowhere.

The only thing that might give Didier Deschamps any nagging concern about our team is Ferguson and how he might take to international football. We absolutely shouldn't be showing our hand in that regard.

[Razors left peg]

Agreed - I'd be annoyed if he plays the full 94/95 mins but absolutely give him 60 / 65 mins. My main concern re Ferguson is that Kenny will misuse him by isolating him up front, he needs game time to work out how best to use his talents.

Perfect scenario for me would be him and Obafemi developing a partnership and as you said coming off after 60 minutes having played brilliantly. This is why I'd also start our best team so we dont have gapping holes in midfield with no service coming from the likes of Hendrick and Browne.

[ontheotherhand]

He's a kid who has barely kicked a ball at international level not some 34 year old veteran with bogey knees. He can handle 45 minutes to get more gametime with his teammates and try out whatever we are working on in training.

[Razors left peg]

Factually incorrect. There's at least one person going tomorrow who will be disappointed to see him play. But I'd wager there will be a lot more than me walking down London Bridge Road tomorrow who think this is mind-numbing stupidity.

It isn't just the question of injuries.

Friendlies are worthwhile to bed in new systems or try players in different roles, but there's nothing to be learned here. He's going to be our #1 forward for the foreseeable future barring injury or a truly special talent emerging out of nowhere.

The only thing that might give Didier Deschamps any nagging concern about our team is Ferguson and how he might take to international football. We absolutely shouldn't be showing our hand in that regard.

Grand so there's one misery guts going tomorrow hoping we don't see the most exciting player we've had in years