It may have been a friendly. We may have lost 2-1 against Norway. But there are always lessons to be learnt from any game. Take note Trapattoni.
By Niall Delaney
1. Old Trap is afraid of trying something refreshing and new
All the talk, all the build up, all the excitement and all the attention centred on one player. One Irish youngster who is breaking through in the Premier League, making waves, making a name for himself and putting a smile on the faces of Irish soccer fans everywhere. His name Seamus Coleman and his time on the pitch against Norway was 0 minutes and 0 seconds.
His crime? Having the temerity to play football with a pace and expression often lacking from this Irish team. His other crime was possibly stealing the thunder from our attention obsessed silver haired “fuhrer”. What is it about our manager? Giovanni Trapattoni must have an ego on a par with Russell Crowe if he’s not prepared to put the team first.
2. Shay Given needs to get out of Man City fast
The Lifford legend has had a tough few months and the effects of losing his place to a typically over-rated English shot stopper is beginning to show. In the last few games Given has looked more human than normal having previously spent most of his Irish career doing implausibly good impressions of Superman.
On Wednesday night again he seemed hesitant and rash in equal measures when faced with the consistent stream of Norwegian long balls sent in his direction. His positioning for Norway’s opening goal was particularly suspect. A January move is now incredibly important for this Irish team as Kieron Westwood is, well, Kieron Westwood.
3. Aiden McGeady is quickly becoming our most important player
He may have an international record of 37 games without scoring, but for the first 20 minutes of the second half Aiden McGeady was head and shoulders above everyone else on the pitch. He injected pace, aggressive running and created a massive sense of panic in the Norwegian back division.
Yes, we know he faded, caught up no doubt in the malaise that bogged down the Irish team from the 65th minute onwards, but the Spartak Moscow midfielder creates space for others as soon as he gets on the ball. He almost always beats the first man and his final ball is improving – note his killer pass for Shane Long’s goalbound shot in the second half.
4. Darren O’Dea? O deary me
Darren O’Dea is not up to international football. A desperate first touch, poor distribution and uncertain positional play mark out the Ipswich Town centre half as one not to watch. A woefully short-headed back pass almost allowed Norway in for a soft second goal early in the second half.
O’Dea is also a Roy Keane defensive signing and while all at JOE love Keano the player, we’re not so sure about Royston the manager, a man who shelled out over 1.5 million pounds sterling on that alleged footballer Paul McShane.
Darren also has a penchant for getting intimate with his teammates as this link testifies. Darren O’Dea: good at scoring Bhoys, not good at stopping boys score.
5.Wanted: A creative midfielder, must have some dirt on the Ireland manager
This team is crying out for some inventiveness in centre midfield. Everyone can see it, so you’d imagine someone getting €2million a year just to spot such a thing would too. Alas no, this is Trap’s world, Trap’s grossly ignorant planet where the only way a creative midfielder could get a break was if they had some secret footage of Trap stealing a schoolboy’s pocket money or of Trap proclaiming the words “I actually think that Bertie Ahern was a good Taoiseach”.
This is the level of blackmail needed for the likes of Andy or Steven Reid, James McCarthy or even the hugely exciting Conor Clifford to ever get a game during Trapattoni’s tenure. We have no-one in the current squad that can put their foot on a ball and control things from centre midfield.
Until we ditch the approach of playing two hod carriers in the current midfield, especially at home, we can kiss goodbye to Euro 2012.
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