If Westwood is getting his game in the Championship, he should be in the squad. Whether he’s willing to come and be No. 2 or 3 at this point I don’t know.
I would lean toward going with Kelleher as No. 2 for this campaign but given COVID, having a capable experienced guy like Westwood around would give me some peace of mind.
It’s not beyond the realm of possibility that we could lose two goalkeepers during an international break due to the virus.
My sixth sense would say that he would not turn up to be a number two ~ perhaps fair enough at this stage of his career and he has had some injuries.Originally Posted by irishfan86
I am not even sure he would turn up if he was told he was playing. That time Given played while injured would upset any back up and rightly so.
I’m a big Given fan but it definitely felt selfish of him to play hurt like that. Westwood was in his prime then too and would have been capable.
If Randy dont play and Keiren keeps his form, Westwood to start in Belgrado, it is dumb to Expose a kid who looks like Pinocchio there, when we have a proven experienced 36 years old grizzly bear playing.
For me it is a flip coin between Westwood and Randy, unless Sean McDermott gets back in contention,
I like Pinnochio Kelleher, but he is gonna be a target the whole match as a weak link because he is untested. Dont you know the serbs streetwise mindset? we need a seasoned keeper there
I would play Pinnocchio Kelleher at home vs Luxembourg or the other guys Azerbaiyan, it is ideal.
You've been warned about using nicknames Bielsa
Given Blotted his Irish playing copybook with that carry-on alright.
Ok, that comparision with love came since they compared this kid on espn away in Denmark and in the league matches with Edwin Van Der Sar, and it is worldwide known that in Spain, southamerica and Mejico they nicknamed the dutch that way with affection,
wont call him again that way, remember its hard to pronounce his first name for ourselves and the uruguayans
Hey Fizzer - I'm looking forward to our youngsters making the grade and have been making as much positive noise about it on here as anybody - I do believe there is the potential for a new golden generation to emerge in the next couple of years. At the same time, when the time comes to pick a squad for a World Cup Qualifier, it should be the best squad at the time. And while Kelleher did impress in his recent appearances for Liverpool, he conceded five goals twice in his run-outs last season - plus there have been concerns expressed by myself and others who have watched him at U21 level about things like his confidence under crosses, his positioning and his abilities in one-on-one situations - these are things to be ironed out in a League One loan spell, not in a debut cap in a competitive international.
I know we're all itching to see these young talents playing for the senior team, and we were hoping that a bunch of them might be ready for the start of this qualifying cycle but we might have to be a little more patient as Idah continues to get garbage minutes in The Championship, Obafemi has fallen back at Southampton, Parrott hasn't really made a consistent breakthrough and even Connolly has been consigned to the bench at Brighton of late.
I agree that it was important to give the youngsters game time in the Nations League games, so that they already have international experience if their careers really start to take off over the next six months, but I would also argue that there could have been more focus on low-capped experienced players like James Collins, with an eye on the upcoming qualifiers - he has been banging in goals since the start of his career - 177 club goals to date, one more this season will put him in double figures for ten of the last eleven seasons. and while a lot of that was in League One and Two, he has really seemed to have found an extra gear in his career over the last two and a half seasons - he looked lively when he replaced Idah recently and took only fifteen minutes to get his first international goal. While I believe Idah will be a big star in the next few years, right now I think Collins is a better option to replace McGoldrick - he should have been used more in the Autumn and should have ten caps under his belt.
It's an online forum. You're not being asked to pronounce his name.
Hey Sam, wasn’t having a go at you personally, you’re obviously a knowledgeable poster and a vocal advocate for our younger players on here. I agree that we are potentially looking at a ‘golden generation’ of sorts. I also agree that the season so far for our young forwards has been really disappointing. A year ago we were looking at four teenage premier league strikers, Connolly, Obafemi, Parrott and Idah. So far none of them have kicked on in a way that we would have liked, hopefully things will improve for them. But I disagree that you need to put out your best eleven in every match. I think we should be playing the kids who might make it, like Knight/O’Shea/Molumby/Connolly rather than the likes of Hourihan, who simply isn’t good enough and has had plenty of opportunities.
Collins is a tricky one, I like him, he’s honest, puts in a shift and has a goal in him. However, on balance I’d stick with Idah (when back from injury).Why not just grit the teeth and lose a few games if necessary to let these lads grow into their positions rather than putting in short-term options?
As regards Kelleher, I have to disagree, he’s a fantastic talent, league one is way below his level, he’s a modern ball-playing keeper who’s going to be top class. If he goes on loan (which might well be a good idea) then it should only be in a top league. I also think he’s improving under crosses but every young keeper struggles with controlling the 18 yard box initially.FWIW I also think Travers will make it, he’s a fabulous shot-stopper, we’ll probably have them both battling it out in about three or four years for the jersey which is very welcome after such a goalkeeping drought. I’ve a theory that it’s keepers that get you to major championships and strikers win them so I think things are really looking up for our prospects but Westwood shouldn’t even be in the conversation at this stage.
Westwood has started five of Wednesday’s last six games and they’re on a bit of a run as they try to get out of the Championship relegation zone. He kept a clean sheet in a win over PNE this weekend. I’d have him in the WCQ squad as No. 2 or 3 if he was willing.
On his day a very good goalkeeper. When Given was injured that time he should have fessed up. Mind you the management should also be able to call it !
I would love to have such a great keeper like Westwood as the direct replacement for Randolph, instead of the younger keepers, experience is vital, I would get Sean McDermott if not, Kelleher and Travers are learning, would start them in the qatar fixtures , kelleher at home and travers away
McDermott hasn't played since the Norwegian league ended more than a month ago, and his next competitive game isn't until April.
If you want to play Travers, you should have included him in your squad: https://foot.ie/threads/218111-Conno...=1#post2064490
Ah even though he won’t have played, it’d be no harm for Stephen Kenny and Dean Kiely to have a look at him, even as the third keeper. Any time I’ve seen him play, he’s been good. The third shirt is basically between Travers, Westwood (if available), McDermott, O’Hara, O’Leary (if everything has come through) and Talbot. There’s an argument for or against any candidate on that list. Personally, unless it’s really clear, I wouldn’t mind a bit of rotation in that respect. They rarely ever get used and there’s no better time to get to know them than working with them on the training ground.
We need some experience gloves behind Randolph, Travers and Kelleher are too soon, both together is a bad idea.
I say Sean McDermott is a very impressive goalkeeper and at a peak. Westwood is great but I will call him up only if randolph is injured, so to start a match, .
Other option is ok Kelleher or Travers as number 1 and Randolph as a back up.
McDermott has played 143 senior club matches in his career, all in various levels of Norweigian football except for 3 in a brief spell in Romania. How many of those have you seen to form such an opinion?
Last edited by ColourfulPeanut; 01/02/2021 at 10:05 PM.
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