Ireland crash out despite superb display
Posted by admin . Published on 19 November 2009, Comments Off Received
There are moments in football when one just cannot believe what they have witnessed. The Republic of Ireland players felt that sense of shock on Wednesday evening as one of the best performances they have produced was overshadowed by a goal that should never have been.
Nobody, including the man himself, will deny that Thierry Henry handled the ball in the lead-up to William Gallas' extra-time winner for France, yet there was little that the Irish could do. They appealed to Swedish referee Martin Hansson and tried to score a goal of their own, but it was too late to get back up off the canvas following that nasty suckerpunch that will sting for some time to come.
France march on to South Africa, while Ireland are left wondering what might have been. It is a cruel way for the qualifying campaign to finish up, especially after out-playing their more fancied opponents, but sadly that is how it ends.
What the Irish players, coaching staff, fans, and media can all take from that game in the Stade de France is a positive performance that could and should lead to better things for this team.
Trap's tactics were spot on
Having lost the first leg of their play-off, Ireland simply needed to score in Paris. They did just that with a fine goal that started with an interception from John O'Shea, led to some short passing in midfield, before Kevin Kilbane chipped a delightful ball over the top for Damien Duff, who then picked out Robbie Keane to slot in.
It was a goal that summed up how the team played overall. They worked for each other, created openings for themselves, pushed their hosts back, and took advantage of France's failings. This was repeated several times throughout the game, but only once did they score.
Trapattoni encouraged his players to put the pressure on higher up the pitch. This caused discomfort for Les Bleus, because even though the Irish were now playing a little further away from their goal they were still doing an excellent job of man-marking the attacking trio of Henry, Nicolas Anelka, and Yoann Gourcuff.
For all of the criticism lobbed at the Irish manager over the past year, this performance showed why he was right all of the time to persist with his preferred 4-4-2 system. It may not have led to World Cup qualification, but the progress has been made and now Ireland can grow stronger as a team.
Duff and Lawrence delivered when it mattered
As highlighted in numerous posts on this blog, wingplay is a huge factor in Trapattoni's system. It was pointed out that Duff and Liam Lawrence needed to play well in this second leg if Ireland were to have any chance of upsetting the odds and they did just that.
Combining a tireless work ethic with a willingness to break forward (whilst never neglecting their defensive duties) the two wingers were the bright sparks throughout. From Lawrence's cross to pick out Kevin Doyle on 26 minutes to Duff's chance that Hugo Lloris saved on the hour mark, they consistently picked holes in the French defence.
Duff has emerged as a favourite amongst Irish supporters due to his many years of service and memories of his dazzling trickery. But he hasn't always delivered for Trapattoni. In Paris, however, he certainly did and deserves a huge amount of credit for how he played.
Lawrence too was outstanding. The Stoke City man created the most chances for his team and looked confident whenever in possession. He should have scooped the Man of the Match award.
Never a goal, but forget video technology
It is obvious that Gallas' goal should never have been allowed, but the talk of bringing in video technology is not something that this blog would be in favour of despite the injustice served out to Ireland.
By introducing that sort of technology it would slow down a game that is not designed to have the stop-start nature of rugby, cricket, or tennis. The game needs to be free-flowing and not encouraged to be stopped numerous times whenever a player thinks that a decision needs to be inspected more closely.
Instead, what should happen is that Fifa and Uefa clamp down on those who blatantly break the rules. Until that happens then teams will suffer the same fate as Ireland and feel let down by the game.
Video technology in football is a huge debate and perhaps this blog will revisit the topic again, but for now the focus should be on well Trapattoni's team played in Paris and throughout the qualifying campaign.
To come within minutes of reaching South Africa says a huge amount about how well the manager has done since taking over. He has lifted Irish international football out of the doldrums and deserves to be praised for that.
Nobody, including the man himself, will deny that Thierry Henry handled the ball in the lead-up to William Gallas' extra-time winner for France, yet there was little that the Irish could do. They appealed to Swedish referee Martin Hansson and tried to score a goal of their own, but it was too late to get back up off the canvas following that nasty suckerpunch that will sting for some time to come.
France march on to South Africa, while Ireland are left wondering what might have been. It is a cruel way for the qualifying campaign to finish up, especially after out-playing their more fancied opponents, but sadly that is how it ends.
What the Irish players, coaching staff, fans, and media can all take from that game in the Stade de France is a positive performance that could and should lead to better things for this team.
Trap's tactics were spot on
Having lost the first leg of their play-off, Ireland simply needed to score in Paris. They did just that with a fine goal that started with an interception from John O'Shea, led to some short passing in midfield, before Kevin Kilbane chipped a delightful ball over the top for Damien Duff, who then picked out Robbie Keane to slot in.
It was a goal that summed up how the team played overall. They worked for each other, created openings for themselves, pushed their hosts back, and took advantage of France's failings. This was repeated several times throughout the game, but only once did they score.
Trapattoni encouraged his players to put the pressure on higher up the pitch. This caused discomfort for Les Bleus, because even though the Irish were now playing a little further away from their goal they were still doing an excellent job of man-marking the attacking trio of Henry, Nicolas Anelka, and Yoann Gourcuff.
For all of the criticism lobbed at the Irish manager over the past year, this performance showed why he was right all of the time to persist with his preferred 4-4-2 system. It may not have led to World Cup qualification, but the progress has been made and now Ireland can grow stronger as a team.
Duff and Lawrence delivered when it mattered
As highlighted in numerous posts on this blog, wingplay is a huge factor in Trapattoni's system. It was pointed out that Duff and Liam Lawrence needed to play well in this second leg if Ireland were to have any chance of upsetting the odds and they did just that.
Combining a tireless work ethic with a willingness to break forward (whilst never neglecting their defensive duties) the two wingers were the bright sparks throughout. From Lawrence's cross to pick out Kevin Doyle on 26 minutes to Duff's chance that Hugo Lloris saved on the hour mark, they consistently picked holes in the French defence.
Duff has emerged as a favourite amongst Irish supporters due to his many years of service and memories of his dazzling trickery. But he hasn't always delivered for Trapattoni. In Paris, however, he certainly did and deserves a huge amount of credit for how he played.
Lawrence too was outstanding. The Stoke City man created the most chances for his team and looked confident whenever in possession. He should have scooped the Man of the Match award.
Never a goal, but forget video technology
It is obvious that Gallas' goal should never have been allowed, but the talk of bringing in video technology is not something that this blog would be in favour of despite the injustice served out to Ireland.
By introducing that sort of technology it would slow down a game that is not designed to have the stop-start nature of rugby, cricket, or tennis. The game needs to be free-flowing and not encouraged to be stopped numerous times whenever a player thinks that a decision needs to be inspected more closely.
Instead, what should happen is that Fifa and Uefa clamp down on those who blatantly break the rules. Until that happens then teams will suffer the same fate as Ireland and feel let down by the game.
Video technology in football is a huge debate and perhaps this blog will revisit the topic again, but for now the focus should be on well Trapattoni's team played in Paris and throughout the qualifying campaign.
To come within minutes of reaching South Africa says a huge amount about how well the manager has done since taking over. He has lifted Irish international football out of the doldrums and deserves to be praised for that.
