Jaden Umeh has never been to the Aviva Stadium in any capacity, so it’s quite something that the Cork teenager could cement his first visit to the venue with a senior Ireland cap.
After one false dawn, the Benfica winger is back at the second time of asking and hoping to feature in Thursday night’s friendly against a Qatar side that has qualified for the World Cup, and who are managed by former Spain boss Julen Lopetegui.
Umeh was initially included in Heimir Hallgrímsson’s squad for the recent, low-key friendly win over Grenada in Spain, when seven players in an experimental group made their senior debuts. But he had to withdraw from that Murcia camp as Benfica needed him for a key Uefa Youth League game.
“I was definitely overthinking it a bit. I’m still young. Even if I didn’t get this call-up, I knew that if I kept my head down and kept working I would soon get the call-up,” the 18-year-old said on Tuesday.
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“It’s actually going to be my first time [at the Aviva Stadium], and to be my first time playing instead of watching, it’s wonderful. It’s going to be amazing. That’s what I’m looking for anyway. Every young boy is looking for that.”
If Umeh is handed his debut on Thursday, he would be making his senior international bow before having chiselled his way into Benfica’s first team.
“I’d say I’d take it in my stride,” the winger said of the opportunity. “Ever since a young age, I’ve been playing not my age, but years up, that’s just how I was, how I was raised by my mam and Cork City. I think it’s just another step-up in my life.”
José Mourinho, soon to be the former Benfica manager as he nears a return to Real Madrid, took a shine to Umeh having watched him play for the youth team. As a result, Umeh has been training regularly with Benfica’s first team following his move from Cork City nearly two years ago.
There was even a recent social media clip doing the rounds of the pair sharing a joke on the training ground.
“He was actually asking if my Portuguese was good. I was laughing and saying it’s all right. Even in the training session, he was talking to me a couple of more times. He’s one of the best managers, one of the best coaches. To have him to give me the advice that I need was really good.”
Umeh, who starred for Ireland’s Under-17s at the World Cup in Qatar last November before making his Under-21 debut in March, feels he has embraced his move to Portugal.
“I heard about their style of play, how they are as a team, the friendly competition, that’s what makes players better,” he said of the club’s selling points.
“The plan they had for me was good, it was a good next step for me. Especially leaving Cork City at the time, going to one of the best academies in the world. It’s been really good so far.
“When I went over there, it was just to keep my head down. The language at the time was hard. I had to really let my football do the talking, but it opened new doors, new opportunities for me and I’m glad.
“A young Cork guy going to a new country to live, it wasn’t just a holiday. But I had the right people in the club around me. I got close to my team-mates, close to the managers, my family came over a few times. But the squad I’ve had through my years in Benfica has been good. They keep helping me, giving me the information I need, even when I was struggling with the language, they translated for me. I just let the football do the talking.”
Umeh is acutely aware of the need for baby steps at this stage of his international career. With a host of squad veterans unavailable for this window, it’s likely to be a fleeting stay at senior level.
But with Euro 2028 arriving on these shores, and Ireland intent on being there either by qualifying automatically or availing of a co-host spot held in reserve by Uefa, Hallgrímsson has told his fringe players to put their hand up for inclusion.
Umeh would love nothing more, and even more so if his older brother Franco (21) – an Ireland Under-21 international at Portsmouth – can play his way on to the Icelander’s radar.
“That would be something special,” he added. “It’s a dream, especially at a young age. We always had Ireland jerseys growing up with our names on the back. I had a ‘J’ in front of my name, but Franco just had ‘Umeh’ because he’s the older brother, he deserves it!
“We still dream about it and I’d love my mam and dad to see it. It’s possible. Anything is possible at this time. I just want to take this opportunity and keep on moving.”
