Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni was incredulous at Anthony Stokes’s excuse that he was too tired to join the squad for this week’s Carling Nations Cup games.
Stokes withdrew from Trap’s panel for the games against Northern Ireland on Tuesday night and Scotland on Sunday.
The Celtic striker helped his club to a Scottish Cup final victory over Motherwell on Sunday, but the big pitch at Hampden Park, and the 22 minutes Stokes spent running about following his introduction in the second half, clearly took their toll.
At Monday’s pre-match press conference, Trap was incredulous. Well, since we don’t usually understand anything he says, we believe he was incredulous.
In his trademark pidgin English, he said, “I spoke with our doctor this morning about this. Young players have a fun job. It is not a job like the working man’s. It is not a difficult job.
“For me it is an 11-month holiday. I played 70 games every season – national, championship, Europe. It is unbelievable, so we must educate our players. We are lucky and we have to enjoy playing football. It is a fine life.”
Stokes wasn’t the only player to annoy Trap, with Wigan’s James McCarthy, who made his competitive debut against Macedonia in April, apparently having failed to show up without offering a reason. At least Stokes had an excuse.
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ podcast – listen to the latest episode now!
