Trap: Irish pride needed in Italy

AFTER the disappointment of Saturday night’s draw with Bulgaria, Giovanni Trapattoni is expecting a positive reaction from his team when Ireland take on world champions Italy in Bari on Wednesday.

“When I played against the big teams as a player it always brought a positive reaction from me,” the manager says. “These players have the same mentality. They are proud and they will be stimulated by the challenge of playing Italy.

“You can see how strong they are mentally in how they reacted after Bulgaria made it 1-1. I said to Marco Tardelli ‘These players are proud’. Our character is important.