Why Trap may be right to pass the buck

IT is a year now since the first, and indeed only, moment of open dissent from within the ranks of Giovanni Trapattoni’s Ireland.

In the immediate aftermath of Ireland’s 3-2 defeat to Russia last October at the Aviva Stadium, Richard Dunne – first in a television interview, and later in conversation with the print media – let rip at his side’s style of play. “As soon as Shay [Given] gets it [the ball], we all turn our back on him and run forward and see if Kevin Doyle can head it and see what else Kevin can do,” said Dunne at the time. “We’re never going to control games if we play like that.”

Twelve months on, and the issue of Ireland getting the ball on the deck and passing it around remains firmly on the agenda. Last month’s qualifiers against Slovakia and Russia were notable not only for their absence of goals, but the absence of any form of concerted possession. Friday was little better.

But while it’s Trapattoni’s job to dictate the manner in which Ireland play, it is emphatically not his task to equip his players with a whole new set of skills. One of the most logical propositions ever made about international football management is, given the limited time managers have with their players, they should not go about re-inventing the wheel. If the majority of a country’s players are used to passing the ball about with their club, then it would be absurd to ask them to pump the ball forward as quickly as possible when they play international football. Likewise, it would be extremely unwise for an international manager to ask a bunch of players who don’t get on the ball all that much with their clubs, to stroke it around majestically when they play for their country.

The passing statistics from a recent Premier League fixture programme tell an interesting tale in relation to the players in Trapattoni’s squad for the double-header against Andorra and Armenia tonight. By ranking the clubs from 1 to 20 in terms of the number of passes made, it’s possible to come up with a reasonably accurate analysis of how Ireland’s squad members are being asked to play with their clubs. Of course, the numbers from last weekend don’t amount to exact science but they do provide a decent picture of what the players are up to.

In total, 16 members of that party currently play in the Premier League (statistics are not readily available for the nine plying their trade in the Championship, or Aiden McGeady and Robbie Keane). Of that 16, Shay Given and Keiron Westwood are goalkeepers, which leaves a total 14 outfield players.

Of those players, 11 play for teams in positions 11 to 20 in the Premier League passing table – Richard Dunne of Aston Villa, Glenn Whelan and Jonathan Walters of Stoke, Seamus Coleman of Everton, James McCarthy of Wigan, Shane Long and Simon Cox of West Brom, Kevin Foley, Stephen Ward, Stephen Hunt and Kevin Doyle of Wolves – with just three players – John O’Shea of Sunderland, and Damien Duff and Stephen Kelly of Fulham — playing for teams in the top half of most frequent passers.

Delve a little deeper and you can see why Trapattoni encourages his team to play as they do, particularly in midfield. Glenn Whelan got on the ball 34 times for Stoke City against Man Utd. Anderson, nominally his opposite number on the day, attempted 59 passes. If you want to compare Whelan to a player from a team of a similar ability, Bradley Johnson of Norwich passed the ball 59 times against Sunderland. Moving on, Seamus Coleman managed 18 passes for Everton against Man City; Ahmed Elmohamady, playing in a similar position for Sunderland, got on the ball 55 times in his side’s game. Stephen Hunt passed the ball 16 times for Wolves against Liverpool, numbers that are dwarfed by, say, the 36 passes that Martin Petrov of attempted on Bolton’s left-wing against Arsenal.

The simple conclusion to draw is that Ireland’s players do not get on the ball at club level as often as players of roughly similar ability at other sides. And to extend the point a little further, it would seem that Irish players are not bought by clubs who like to pass the ball about. Instead, they tend to play for clubs with a pragmatic rather than purist approach to Premier League football. That is what Trapattoni has to work with.

Of course, there are arguments. The two Irish midfielders who accumulated the most passes in the Premier League weekend in question were James McCarthy, with a total of 37, and Wes Hoolahan, who managed 46 passes for Norwich. It is also interesting to note that John O’Shea, with 85 passes, and Stephen Ward, with 56, were the two Irish players who got on the ball most often. Ward is suspended but both would invariably be asked by Trapattoni to defend and sit deep.

Why? The answers come from the players around them. There is no point in having two players in a team – or indeed four if you were to include McCarthy and Hoolahan – stroking the ball about if those around them aren’t comfortable in possession. That’s why, for example, the inclusion of McCarthy could do more harm to the overall cause than good, much like Jack Charlton deduced that Liam Brady could not be central to his plans. The only way Trap can change the way his team plays is if the culture of his squad changes. So long as the majority of his players play for teams who play a certain way, the Italian would be mad to attempt anything different.