Trap has not lost the Irish dressing room
Friday evening’s game was one of my most demoralising experiences in an Irish shirt. Yes, the Germans were a fantastic side, playing to the top of their game, but it’s very hard to take being beaten 6-1 in your own backyard.
The fans and media got their long awaited wish for a 4-3-3/4-5-1 formation, and although we were relatively comfortable for the first 30 minutes or so, after that, the Germans took the game by the scruff of the neck and we couldn’t handle them.
The way they passed and moved the ball was as impressive as I’ve seen. The fluidity with which the likes of Muller and Reus interchanged position with the mercurial Ozil was very hard to cope with. After the initial 30 minutes or so we seemed to drop deeper and deeper as a team and it played into the Germans hands.
As good as they were the other night, the biggest thing that sticks in my mind is how clinical they were in everything they did.
Take their shooting as an example: eight shots, six goals says it all.
There were very few positives to take from the game but I thought Seamus Coleman gave a very mature performance. I am only speculating, but I’d imagine one reason why he hasn’t played as much as he would have liked is that the manager has maybe seen him as a very attacking full-back. On Friday he showed what a solid player he is and never shied away from responsibility, whether it was being available for a pass in tight areas or getting a tackle in. I’m sure Seamus will be a big player for us for years to come.
Obviously the manager has been heavily criticised in the aftermath of this result and speculation about his position is now rampant but, like I’ve said before, people need to be careful what they wish for.
We as a nation unfortunately haven’t got the biggest pool of players to choose from. Of course people will have their opinion on who should or shouldn’t be in the squad and cases will be made for certain players who are playing well at a high level.
But when you look at what the boss has achieved while in charge of this group, then I truly believe people need to have a reality check. He has lost two qualifiers since he took over, the second being against the Germans on Friday. He took us very close to the World Cup in 2010 and all the way to the Euros in the summer.
If we beat the Faroes tonight, then we will have six points from a possible nine and be in a good position going onto the next two qualifiers against Sweden and Austria. Please tell me what other manager would have done any better, with what he has at his disposal?
There have been reports in the papers the last day or two of player revolt and disharmony within the squad. I’m certainly not going to go into details as what happens within the squad should stay there. What I will say is that the players are 100% behind the manager. We believe in what he is doing and has done thus far. The manager is a very clever man, with a wealth of experience and everything he does is for a reason. So when certain stories get sensationalised and people maybe feel sorry for the player involved, there is sometimes another side which perhaps people aren’t aware of.
There have been lots of stories in the papers suggesting that the manager has, as they say, lost the dressing room. Well, I’ve been in dressing rooms where that happened but I can assure you that it is simply not the case with Giovanni Trapattoni and Ireland.
Tonight’s match will be a true test of character. We are realistically chasing that second spot in the group and if we are to put ourselves in with a good shout for it, we need to win. Yes, a good performance would be nice but a win is imperative.
Regardless of all the negativity surrounding us in the last few days, we as a group need to raise our spirits, stick together and not lose track of what we need to do tonight.
