Ireland vs Germany - Pre-match thread

**TheBoss** · 10/10/2007, 3:19 PM

Not that many of you care:

Ireland v Germany Record (West Germany Counted Aswell):

Code:

OVERALL:
Pld: 17      W: 6     D: 3     L: 8     F: 22    A: 28

COMPETITIVE:
Pld: 02      W: 0     D: 1     L: 1     F: 1     A: 2

COMPETITIVE HOME:
Pld: 00      W: 0     D: 0     L: 0     F: 0     A: 0

**smithy** · 11/10/2007, 8:16 AM

Originally Posted by smithy

German squad without Ballack & Klose & Lahm

Tor
12 Timo Hildebrand 05.04.1979 FC Valencia 6 -
1 Jens Lehmann 10.11.1969 Arsenal London 48 -

Abwehr
35 Gonzalo Castro 11.06.1987 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 3 -
3 Arne Friedrich 29.05.1979 Hertha BSC Berlin 52 -
24 Manuel Friedrich 13.09.1979 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 8 1
27 Clemens Fritz 07.12.1980 Werder Bremen 7 1
2 Marcell Jansen 04.11.1985 FC Bayern M�nchen 18 1
17 Per Mertesacker 29.09.1984 Werder Bremen 35 1
21 Christoph Metzelder 05.11.1980 Real Madrid 35 -

Mittelfeld
18 Tim Borowski 02.05.1980 Werder Bremen 29 2
8 Torsten Frings 22.11.1976 Werder Bremen 68 10
34 Roberto Hilbert 16.10.1984 VfB Stuttgart 5 -
22 David Odonkor 21.02.1984 Betis Sevilla 12 1
38 Simon Rolfes 21.01.1982 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 4 -
19 Bernd Schneider 17.11.1973 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 80 4
7 Bastian Schweinsteiger 01.08.1984 FC Bayern M�nchen 45 13
28 Piotr Trochowski 22.03.1984 Hamburger SV 7 -

Angriff
32 Mario Gomez 10.07.1985 VfB Stuttgart 3 3
37 Patrick Helmes 01.03.1984 1. FC K�ln 4 -
33 Stefan Kie�ling 25.01.1984 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1 -
31 Kevin Kuranyi 02.03.1982 FC Schalke 04 42 19
20 Lukas Podolski 04.06.1985 FC Bayern M�nchen 40 23

Schneider, Hilbert, Borowski out...

**shakermaker1982** · 11/10/2007, 8:24 AM

Can anybody predict Stan's team? I'll have a bash......

-------Given-------

Kelly-Dunne-O'Shea-Finnan

McGeady-Carsley-A Reid-Kilbane

Doyle-Keane

If Andy Reid isn't fit then I imagine he'll bring in Douglas. That team does not fill me with any confidence.

**ifk101** · 11/10/2007, 8:38 AM

Originally Posted by shakermaker1982

Can anybody predict Stan's team? I'll have a bash......

-------Given-------

Kelly-Dunne-O'Shea-Finnan

McGeady-Carsley-A Reid-Kilbane

Doyle-Keane

If Andy Reid isn't fit then I imagine he'll bring in Douglas. That team does not fill me with any confidence.

I've a feeling Stan will start Joey O'Brien ahead of Kelly. Otherwise that should be the starting line-up.

**dr_peepee** · 11/10/2007, 11:52 AM

Dunno... Kelly is a bit of a 'back to the wall' defender... And not in the Greame Le Saux way either.

I think he's better against better opposition where less football from him is required.

**padzer** · 11/10/2007, 12:13 PM

Does anyone know what time the squad training session is at? Whereabouts in Malahide is it?

**Stuttgart88** · 11/10/2007, 1:47 PM

Stephen Elliott has just pulled out with a hamstring strain. Poor guy is jinxed or just isn't physically cut out for it. He should get assessed like Duff was at Chelsea. Maybe yoga or pilates or something would make him less perceptible to muscle and ligament injuries.

**jmurphyc** · 11/10/2007, 1:53 PM

That's a bit of a blow in my opinion. I was really looking forward to seeing him play again. He's done well for us whenever he's been on the pitch, and IMO when fit and playing regularly, he's our best back up to Keane and Doyle. Hopefully he'll be fit again when we're playing our friendlies next year as it would be good to see if he can keep up his good form in a green shirt and if he can link up well with our new players.

**geysir** · 11/10/2007, 3:41 PM

Elliot is a bit of a blow but Andy Reid is still a big doubt, looks like he did in ankle pretty bad, worse than a 5 day sprain.
If we had to depend on beating the Germans in order to qualify we would be sh�tting bricks at this stage.

**Stuttgart88** · 11/10/2007, 4:48 PM

yeah, thank God we're virtually out. It's far more relaxing.

**shakermaker1982** · 11/10/2007, 5:46 PM

if Andy Reid doesn't make it and we still had a great chance of qualifying (i.e. 4 points on our eastern european travels) can you imagine how stressed we'd all be if we were relying on a central midfield partnership of Carsley and Miller to get a result against the Germans??

I wanna see Keogh get a good run out on the Wednesday, hell I'd even chance him on Saturday we are that bare.

**Noelys Guitar** · 11/10/2007, 6:24 PM

Ireland 1 Germany 1. Average to good German team in my opinon with or without their injuries( and I see "Lawro" agrees with me. He actually sees us winning 1-0!). All to no avail as we have zero chance of qualifying. If we don't get beaten then Stan will give us his "we are improving" speech. Nightmare scenario. I expect Liam Miller to have a very good game if he plays. We will play well in patches but give away a silly goal.

**Noelys Guitar** · 11/10/2007, 6:30 PM

http://www.safc.com/news/?page_id=13350

**tricky_colour** · 12/10/2007, 2:00 AM

I am thinking something like this.

------------Given-------------

Finnan--Dunne--O'Shea--Kilbane

------------Carsley-------------

Doyle---Millar------A Reid---Hunt

-------------Keane-------------

With this team we cannot lose

Inpenetratable midfield and goals galore up front.

Not to many out of position and we can swop em about a bit to confuse the ridgid systematic Krauts.

A hefty wadge on at 3-1 with Will Hill should finance your trip to the Alps

**Supreme feet** · 12/10/2007, 4:56 AM

Oh Christ I'm disillusioned.

One of my Bulgarian friends has invited me to the Bulgaria-Romania qualifier in Sofia. He has also said that if I don't learn the chants, I could get the sh*t kicked out of me there and then.

When I'm packed off back to Macken's Funeral Home in Wexford, can someone say that 'it was Steve's fault'? Maybe I could become a martyr.

**Supreme feet** · 12/10/2007, 5:09 AM

Formation - Doyle and Keane up front. Carsley and Andy Reid in midfield with Dunne, Finnan and Kilbane defending. We will have two goalkeepers, with Shay Given wearing many Rosary Beads. For the final place, we will acquire Chuck Norris (maybe he, like his Plymouth namesake, could declare for us), to make us undisputed Champions.

In the Euro 2008 final against England, (having exterminated the Czechs, Germans, French, Dutch and Spaniards with nothing but his trusty AK-47), he will chop off Michael Owen's head with a roundhouse kick, slicing the ball beyond a hapless Robinson, and our country will be hungover for a full decade. Come on Ireland!!!!

F*ckin' Yeah!

**cavan_fan** · 12/10/2007, 8:22 AM

One of the many things that annoys me about Stan is his lack of planning. At the mo the only Centre Halves we have in the squad are Dunne and O'Shea (injured probably). The rest are full backs primarily. So all it takes is an injury to Runne or O'Shea and we'll have to play Bruce or Kelly there. Now this is not exactly impossible to happen. What's Stan's plan for this? It appears to be management by hope. He needs to say - who are my 6 best Centre Halves? Obviously Dunne, McShane, probably O'Shea and O'Brien. After that he has no idea. But wouldnt we all rather see Doherty or O'Dea (not match fit I know) or even Breen there than Kilbane.

**Armando** · 12/10/2007, 9:34 AM

Originally Posted by tricky_colour

I am thinking something like this.

------------Given-------------

Finnan--Dunne--O'Shea--Kilbane

------------Carsley-------------

Doyle---Millar------A Reid---Hunt

-------------Keane-------------

With this team we cannot lose

Inpenetratable midfield and goals galore up front.

Not to many out of position and we can swop em about a bit to confuse the ridgid systematic Krauts.

A hefty wadge on at 3-1 with Will Hill should finance your trip to the Alps

Hunts suspended...Kilbane will play left mid and Kelly will be in at full back I'd say.

**jmurphyc** · 12/10/2007, 1:41 PM

I don't know whether this has been mentioned yet, but Darren Potter has been ruled out of Saturday's game. The squad is looking extremely thin at the moment.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/foot...ls/7041759.stm