NO MORE than most of those new to the English language and all its unfathomable quirkiness, Giovanni Trapattoni might have some work to do before he masters the pronunciation of the Wolves' striker's surname, but even before Andy Kyog's injury-time goal on Saturday night the Italian had identified the Dubliner as one of the "young" in his squad who had caught his eye.

In Portugal last week, when asked for his first impressions of Keogh, Trapattoni smiled, tapped his forehead with his finger, and pointed at his feet. The message might have been tricky to convert into print, but it was clear enough - as he later put it, "he thinks, he is clever, he understands immediately what to do."

When told of his manager's appraisal of his abilities and belief he has the potential to develop into a player of some substance, Keogh, the first to emerge from the Croke Park dressingrooms on Saturday, was evidently uplifted.

This, after all, is a 22-year-old who was booed at times the season just finished by a section of the Wolves' support that regarded a return of eight goals in 43 league appearances (10 as a substitute) as insufficient to justify Mick McCarthy's faith in him.

His record under Trapattoni is somewhat more impressive: three goals in as many games in the past six days. Granted, two of them came in training games, against Portimonense and Lagos in Portugal, but they too were opportunities to impress the manager.

"All I can do is keep scoring goals and give him something to think about," said Keogh. "We're all trying to impress him, so the goals might keep me in his thoughts. We have Robbie and Doyler up front, Hunty and Duffer on the wings, they all have Premier League experience, so of course it's going to be hard for me to get in this team. But if I can be in the squad, come on and make a difference I'll be happy with that.

"The ball's just been dropping to me in the right places of late and I've been lucky enough to put it in the net. It was a nice flick-on from Daryl (Murphy), it just came nicely to me and I stuck it away. It was a great feeling, it's what I dreamed of since I was a young lad and it finally came true at Croke Park. The manager just said 'well done, great goal, keep your head down and work hard'. And that's what I will do.

"The game was just about getting to know his tactics, the way he wants us to play. The lads battled on well, we showed we're not going to give up. It's been really different and really enjoyable the past week. He's a lovely man, very passionate about the game, his enthusiasm rubs off on all of us."

Robbie Keane said: "Andy is a real handful, he's got great energy and he showed that again when he came on. He took his goal superbly well, he's definitely one for the future."

Keane picked out the night's two debutants, midfielder Glenn Whelan and left-back Damien Delaney, as "two of our best players", the pair both expressing satisfaction with their senior bows.

"I don't want to be a one-cap wonder," said Whelan, "I want to try and get as many caps as I can. I just have to work hard in training and hopefully get in the team for the Colombia game."

Delaney might have been forgiven for looking upon the day with mixed emotions, having watched the club he left in January, Hull City, win promotion to the Premier League on Saturday afternoon, when they beat Bristol City at Wembley, before taking to the pitch at Croke Park.

"Not at all," said the Queens Park Rangers' defender who spent six seasons with Hull (where he played mainly as a centre-half), "I was genuinely chuffed to bits for them. It's a great place, a great club, I'm thrilled for them. I'll give Dean (Windass - who got the game's only goal) a ring there now in a minute, but I doubt he'll be in any condition to talk to me," he laughed.

"So, yeah, it's been a good day. I really enjoyed it out there, it was a great experience. It's a long time since I've been back here," he said of Croke Park, his last appearance in the stadium in 1999 when he played in midfield for Cork in the minor All-Ireland football semi-final against Mayo. Cork lost that day, despite Delaney's two goals.

From keeping an eye on Billie Joe Padden in 1999 to Bosko Jankovic in 2008, it's been a hell of a sporting journey for the Corkman.

"Hopefully I'll be back," he said, longing for more.