Giovanni Trapattoni will be eager to see some of his international players secure moves sooner rather than later as key games approach for the Republic of Ireland, writes STUART BRENNAN
With the announcement of the Republic of Ireland’s squad to play Croatia scheduled for Friday, it remains to be seen where many of Giovanni Trapattoni’s squad will be playing their football by the time next season rolls around. The importance of this fixture, Ireland’s last warm up before the crucial Euro 2012 qualifying games against Russia and Slovakia, is lost on nobody, not least the manager.
The Croatia friendly is a final opportunity for Trapattoni to fine tune his tactics, and to build upon the momentum the team has generated - Ireland remain unbeaten in competitive fixtures since October of last year. As well as things have been going of late, many of the players have endured contrasting fortunes at club level, and Trapattoni will want things resolved so there are no distractions to derail a qualifying campaign which looks so promising at the moment.
Many of Ireland’s key players, including Shay Given and captain Robbie Keane, face uncertain futures at their respective clubs. This is an obvious concern for Trapattoni, who has stated he “cannot have seven or eight players who don’t play for their club”. In Ireland’s last Euro 2012 qualifying game against Macedonia, Aiden McGeady was the only starting player who was a regular for his club last season. If this doesn’t worry Ireland fans, it should.
Keane’s future will be of particular interest to the Italian. Ireland’s record goalscorer, who has netted six times in his last four international games, will almost certainly be leaving Tottenham this summer, with Bolton and Blackburn (potentially two more of his “boyhood” clubs) the latest clubs to be linked with him. Regardless of where he ends up, playing regular football is paramount.
At least Given’s future seems to be all but resolved. His proposed switch to Aston Villa appears to be imminent. Given was magnificent against Macedonia, and showed again he deserves to start for a Premier League team. Why Arsenal haven’t snapped him up already is baffling, given their goalkeeping “talent” has cost them so dearly in recent years. This move to Villa will see him team up with Richard Dunne, who will be looking to make a fresh start under new Villa boss Alex McLeish, following a falling out with Gerard Houllier.
John O’Shea recently ended a 13-year affiliation with Manchester United, and will surely see more action with Sunderland. One has to question how motivated O’Shea, a player who has won every trophy there is at club level, might be joining a team who haven’t qualified for Europe since 1974. For a player used to such levels of success, how will relative mediocrity affect him? Still, he has been a vital member of the Ireland squad for some time now, despite never really cementing a first team place at United. While this was never a huge issue for Trapattoni, as O’Shea would still play plenty of football every season, the same cannot be said for Darron Gibson.
Last year the Italian stated: “If I was Gibson, I would go to another team where I always play.” Gibson had the opportunity to follow O’Shea from Old Trafford to Sunderland, but the move broke down, reportedly due to his excessive wage demands. It is not yet clear where Gibson will end up, but you can bet he won’t be in Trapattoni’s good books having spurned this opportunity.
Sunderland looked a good fit for Gibson, but he may now find himself having to settle for a more isolated role with United, and Ireland, or club less suited to him and his game.
The same problem can be seen with many of Ireland’s fringe players. The arrival of Martin Jol at Fulham doesn’t help clarify Stephen Kelly’s situation. Andy Keogh looks like he may have to drop a division, having fallen out of Mick McCarthy’s plans at Wolves, while Celtic assistant manager Johan Mjallby has stated that the SPL side need to offload one or two central defenders- with Darren O’Dea likely to be one of them.
It’s not all bad news however. Along with O’Shea sealing a move, Keiren Westwood has also joined Sunderland, while Seán St. Ledger has joined Leicester City’s promotion push under Sven-Goran Eriksson. Shane Long had a fantastic season with Reading, top scoring in the Championship, and following the Royals’ failure to get promoted, they have resigned themselves to losing their prized asset to a Premiership club. There will be no shortage of takers either.
James McCarthy, despite his controversial absence from the successful Carling Nations Cup squad, has the potential to be a key player for Ireland in the future, but may have to wait his turn to establish himself. Following an encouraging second half of the season with Wigan, McCarthy gained a reputation as one of the best talents in the around, and he will struggle to find himself in a position where he won’t be getting enough game time. The same can be said of Wolves’ Kevin Doyle, undoubtedly one of Trapattoni’s most vital players. There has been speculation Arsenal might be interested in him, but Wolves are unlikely to be willing to part company with such an important player.
While many of the players face an anxious summer, Trapattoni will be keeping a keen eye on proceedings, as a large portion of his squad will have to make crucial decisions which will impact upon their international careers. He will be hopeful that this coming season, the majority of those players who are out of favour with their clubs can secure a move to gain first team football. He has stated he would encourage players to drop divisions in order to get more time on the pitch. It would make his job easier and let him pick the team the right way; based on performances.
Stuart is on work experience with the Irish Times. He is in his fourth-year of Business and Sociology Degree at Trinity College, Dublin, and has also written articles for www.caughtoffside.com.
