I have to say as somebody with Irish heritage this counts as almost treason but I hope that the Republic of Ireland don’t win their European Championship play-off tie.
I have watched the national team play numerous times throughout the qualifying campaign and they have been awful to watch.
Attrition
Every game I have watched Ireland play has been like a war of attrition. People may defend this style and say that it gets results but I’m sure the Irish fans want to see some football. At the moment they are getting nothing but defensive hit and hope football.
Mediocre
Last week I wrote an article about Ireland saying they had mediocre players. I must apologise to the Republic for that because I possibly underestimated some of their players. They do have players capable of playing football but they are currently not in the starting line-up.
The likes of Norwich’s attacking midfielder Wes Hoolahan. He has been really impressive in recent seasons for the Canaries and his form has been decent in the top flight this season. Like a lot of Irish fans I’m asking the question why hasn’t he been given a chance at international level?
Then there is the likes of Everton’s Seamus Coleman. The youngster has been one of the Premier League’s most improved players of recent seasons and he is not being given his chance either. Coleman had been suffering with an injury earlier in the season but now appears to be over it.
These sorts of players are the ones who will be Ireland internationals for years to come and they are not being given their chance.
Pedestrian
The current central midfield of Keith Andrews and Glenn Whelan wouldn’t inspire me with confidence. Neither of the duo seem to have any pace, vision or creativity about them. They are basically spoilers put in the middle of the park to win the ball.
Usually teams have creative players to give the ball to. However the only player that seems to have any creativity about him in the Republic team is veteran winger Damien Duff.
Unconvincing
On the other wing Aiden McGeady was billed as this exciting young winger when he first came through and I haven’t seen him have a good game for Ireland. He just hasn’t convinced me that he capable of playing at the top level of football.
I would love him to prove me wrong in the play-off games. He must have some quality or he wouldn’t be selected. Maybe I just haven’t seen the best of him. Ireland boss Giovanni Trappatoni seems to think he is playing well.
Alternatives
Ireland do have alternatives to the likes of McGeady, Andrews and Whelan. The likes of Keith Fahey, Stephen Hunt and the aforementioned Coleman all have a good shout of being in the team. However Trappatoni seems to be sticking with his set midfield.
Experience
Giovanni Trapattoni is one of the most experience bosses in world football today. I think he’s came into the European Championship qualifiers with a set idea of how the team will play and stuck to it. There is nothing wrong with tactical consistency.
The Italian has set the team up so they are hard to beat and as seven consecutive clean sheets proved they were hard to score against. Trapattoni has very much stuck to the very stereotypical Italian approach to the game. It may have been very dull but its proved effective so far.
However if they meet a stronger team than the ones they have played so far they may need to attack and that could be a problem with Kevin Doyle now suspended for the first leg of the play-offs.
Options
Record goal scorer Robbie Keane should be fit again by then and Trapattoni has decent options. He has the likes of Shane Long, Simon Cox and Jonathan Walters available to him. He could even call-on Newcastle’s in-form striker Leon Best.
Plan B
Even with all Trapattoni’s experience I don’t believe Ireland have a plan B. There are some dangerous teams in the play-off draw but the Republic will be seeded which means they will avoid the likes of Croatia and Portugal. However even with the seeding it doesn t guarantee them a place in Euro 2012.
Sorry
Sorry granddad I really can’t bring myself to support your national team at the moment. As a football fan and writer it would be wrong of me to endorse such dull football. A lot of Republic of Ireland fans have been complaining about their style of football.
However would they rather play dull football and qualify for Euro 2012 or play attractive football and not qualify. I know the answer and so do most of you out there.
Do you want to see the Republic qualify for Euro 2012?
