Giovanni Trapattoni wants to forge a club mentality among his squad to help Republic of Ireland qualify for the World Cup next year. Ireland can take a huge stride towards South Africa with a win against Bulgaria on Saturday, which would send them top of Group 8 as Italy only have a friendly.
Trapattoni’s men warmed up for the Sofia trip with a friendly draw against Nigeria in London and he hopes the time together results in a club-like spirit.
“We must look at the mentality — not staying at home and resting but being professional,” he said. “Our aim is to qualify and do it as a team. It is a team with the club and also a team with the national squad.”
Goalkeeper Dean Kiely, however, opted to return to his family after learning he would not feature at Craven Cottage, so Trapattoni will call up a reserve goalkeeper. Joe Murphy and Colin Doyle are the likely candidates.
Kevin Foley picked up a knock and will be assessed on Monday, while Darron Gibson has had a scan on a thigh problem ahead of his return from Champions League duty with Manchester United. Caleb Folan, who has been nursing a knee problem, is also hoping to return.
“The Bulgaria game is very important for qualifying. They are one of the strong teams in the group and have many good players with good technique and creativity,” Trapattoni added.
“It is maybe their last opportunity to think about qualifying and I’m sure it will be the most difficult game in this qualifying. Every game is like a final because each is worth three points. We have a good advantage but will never think that we are already qualified.
“The Nigeria game was a good test for me to see our mentality and performance. We learned how it is possible to have a professional mentality after a long season.”
Trapattoni handed out debuts to Foley, Sean St Ledger, Eddie Nolan, Liam Lawrence, Leon Best and Keiren Westwood during the Nigeria clash.
“It was a good signal for the future,” the coach added. “Also, I hoped that players like (Keith) Andrews and (Glenn) Whelan were playing for their clubs and now they are in their first teams.”
Wolves defender Foley wants to build on his first appearance.
“It was a great feeling making my debut and hopefully there will be a few more,” he said. “It’s what you play football for. We’ll have to wait and see about Bulgaria because there are a lot of good players who can play at right-back.
“It’s been a long, tough season with Wolves but it was fantastic getting promotion. If we get a result against Bulgaria that would be the perfect ending and it would set us up really nicely for next season. We would be able to look at it with a positive frame of mind.”
