John Fallon: The Irishmen to watch in the January transfer window

Stephen Kenny will want Adam Idah to get first team football under his belt ahead of the next internationals in March. Picture: Niall Carson

Covid-19 enforced postponements have given Irish players stuck in a rut that extra bit of headspace to ponder their future as the escape window looms on January 1.

A mid-season move can provide the jolt someone urgently needs but selecting the right club is crucial. Few of last January’s switches worked – Troy Parrott to Ipswich Town, Shane Long joining Bournemouth, and Jayson Molumby resuming his Championship journey with Preston North End symptomatic of underwhelming loan deals. Jack Byrne’s Cypriot odyssey never got off the ground.

Only Conor Hourihane’s temporary jaunt to Swansea City could be considered a success of the loan moves; his contribution helping them reach the play-off final.

The Corkman is again away from Premier League glamour but has the comfort of a loan at Sheffield United until the end of the season. Given the 30-year-old’s contract with Aston Villa expires in May, remaining in the second tier is the likeliest outcome.

Others entering the final five months of their deals are looking upwards. Rotherham United could cash in on Chiedozie Ogbene but admit it would take “ridiculous money” to part with one of the main drivers behind their bid for an instant Championship return. They sit top of League One.

Jason Knight is another player valuable to his employer but a firesale of Derby County’s assets will be avoided if the expected takeover is completed in the coming weeks.

Here, we look at six Irish players for whom the window has come at the right time for a change of scene.

Darren Randolph (West Ham):

The goalkeeper felt compelled to clarify on social media that he wasn’t selected for the September internationals, quashing speculation that he’d opted out. That he hasn’t played a minute of club football this season, remaining behind Lukasz Fabianski and Alphonse Areola, has also quashed claims for his reinstatement.

Darren Randolph

Randolph was Ireland’s undisputed No 1 since replacing Shay Given in 2015 but his club inactivity, coupled with the ascent of three young rivals, doesn’t bode well for his prospects of adding to his 50 caps. That outlook could improve were he to engineer a badly needed transfer, and Stephen Kenny has said that, at 34, the Wicklow man still has time on his side.

Adam Idah (Norwich):

Two years ago this week, Idah burst on the scene by bagging a hat-trick at Preston North End in the FA Cup. When he started his first Premier League game at Old Trafford days later, stardom beckoned but there’s been a distinct lack of flow to his career since. Injury and Covid-19 problems played their part but relying on exposure in a side either chasing promotion or battling relegation is not ideal for an inexperienced striker. Ironically, coronavirus issues with teammates presented a window to start against Crystal Palace yesterday. The Corkman turns 21 in February, by which time he should be at a different club, preferably in the Championship, and heading towards the March internationals enlivened by a string of starts.

Aaron Connolly (Brighton):

A peer of Idah’s, Connolly’s situation appears to be more significant. The next month could determine whether he gets another crack at the Premier League. It seems Graham Potter has had enough of a player who simply hasn’t done enough. The Galwegian’s breakthrough moment of the 2019/20 did come at the highest level, scoring a brace on his maiden Premier League start against Tottenham, yet glimpses of his class have subsequently been too fitful. Compatriot Evan Ferguson, at just 17, made the bench ahead of Connolly for Sunday’s win over Brentford. His choosing to follow Middlesbrough on Instagram prompted speculation over a loan move, evidently an option which, if presented, he could do with snapping up.

Jeff Hendrick (Newcastle):

If the Irish midfielder was part of Eddie Howe’s plans, he’d have seen much more than 10 minutes of action by now. That cameo off the bench in last week’s thumping by Manchester City was Hendrick’s first Premier League appearance since a goalscoring contribution against Wolves in early October.

Jeff Hendrick of Newcastle United. Picutre: Naomi Baker

Howe insists he’s stretched for Thursday’s trip to Everton but even if there’s another opportunity for the 29-year-old, a January clearout is inevitable. Newcastle’s new Saudi owners are determined to avoid the drop and will arm their new boss with a war chest for reinforcements. Then, it will be a case of too many midfielders, rather than too few, for Howe to pick.

Jamie McGrath (St Mirren):

Like Ogbene, McGrath is running down his contract and will be available in the summer for free. However, for both the sake of Jim Goodwin’s transfer kitty and McGrath’s standards, a parting over the next four weeks is advisable. The Buddies are ninth in the SPFL, a long distance from the mid-table status they enjoyed for much of last season, and the winger from Meath could do with a fresh working environment. Aberdeen are prepared to shell out but the English circuit, where McGrath could hold his own at Championship level, ought to be the 25-year-old’s target.

Daryl Horgan (Wycombe):

One of Stephen Kenny’s go-to players is struggling for game time in League One. A winger who was brought on at half-time against Azerbaijan in September to rescue the game and earned a start in the following month’s rematch cannot expect to retain his squad place if that situation persists. Although Wycombe manager Gareth Ainsworth has attributed Horgan’s exclusion to his winning team, that’s no comfort to a player whose contract lapses next summer, just short of his 30th birthday. A return to Dundalk, seeing they’ve changed their contract policy, offers an immediate remedy on the pitch and might work all-round for family reasons too.

Postecoglou has earned respect of the Celtic faithful

Whether Ange Postecoglou is the ultimate cure to Celtic’s ills remains to be seen but nobody can argue that he’s not doing the manager’s job his way.

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou

The Greek-born former Australian international was hardly an inspiring choice at the end of a very long search for Neil Lennon’s successor, ignorance more of a factor in overlooking his feat of back-to-back World Cup qualifications as boss of the Socceroos.

Yet he’s at least began to close the gap on Rangers, delivered silverware in the form of the League Cup, and given Celtic a sense of identity again.

Moreover, the way in which he’d handled the media shows he’s his own man.

Postecoglou was already known as a firebrand, often clashing with pundits in TV studios in his homeland, but he has dealt with any doubters in Scotland with a smile or a putdown.

“I’ve not landed from the moon,” was one rebuke to a questioner on his knowledge of opponents Hearts, while his reluctance to engage in the fallout of their Champions League exit was explained by an admission that he wasn’t an “accountant”.

As one of his predecessors, Ronny Deila, discovered, straight-talking managers don’t always last the distance at Parkhead but refusing to compromise on his principles has already won him the respect of Celtic’s faithful.

Slowly, very slowly, but FAI overhaul getting there

Two-and-a-half years after they were recommended, the FAI’s overhauled committee structure is finally getting down to business.

Reports into FAI affairs have been plentiful since their crisis began in early 2019 but the first of those, by the Sport Ireland-commissioned governance review group, charted a new system, detailing the purpose and composition of 12 committees.

Frustration at the delays in convening the committees led to resignations by elected members Sean Brodie and Andrew Doyle while confirming terms of reference and finalising vetting procedures were cited by the FAI as the primary reasons among the litany of obstacles.

Belated progress looked to be made in July when the association confirmed their chairpersons for each of the refined 10 committees, five apiece for football and business. The next step was the board seeking applications for nominations on these, subject to eligibility criteria. Last month, company secretary Gerry Egan admitted that the vetting process took longer than anticipated but they were going as fast as they could. A provisional date of January 31 will be the stage for the next update to the Assembly, following elections, if necessary, within the three chambers of the pyramid. Clear as mud but getting there, ever so slowly.