Dignified Ruutli still dreaming of an upset

LAST Thursday Tarmo Ruutli gave a press conference that was soundtracked by laughter.

Much of it was his own but it was all deep sighs and long pauses with the Estonian manager at the Radisson St Helen’s Hotel in Stillorgan yesterday.

Sure, he did his best to draw a veil over the wounds inflicted by the Republic of Ireland in Tallinn but, time and again, his words were betrayed by his body language. The few chuckles there were sounded hollow but there was ne’er a hint of self-pity.

Viktor Kassai may be public enemy number one back home but Ruutli neglected to pin all his troubles on the Hungarian referee — not even when it was suggested that sympathy was thin on the ground from a group of players that suffered so greatly just two years before.

“I remember the Paris game and the hand situation but games are different,” he said.

“We can’t say we lost the last game because the referee did something wrong. The first two goals were lost duels in the air. The referee cannot score for us. We have to be at our best level.

“This is not an easy game,” he explained, looking ahead to tonight.

“Two games in a row and the first result was really bad so, from our side, you can say that maybe the Irish team deserved it more to go to the finals. But anyway, a game is a game and we start again at 0-0 and try to show interesting football and not just be there on the pitch.”

The scars borne from last Friday will be visible on the visitors’ teamsheet as well as the scoreboard thanks to the red cards of their centre-backs Andrei Stepanov and Raio Piiroja and the yellow card received by goalkeeper Sergei Pareiko.

Pavel Londek is expected to come in between the sticks while Taavi Rahn and Sander Puri are also expected to be drafted in. So too, is the US-based midfielder Joel Lindpere, the prodigal son who played his first game in two years as a substitute in the first leg.

The words ‘deckchair’ and ‘Titanic’ may be appropriate but Ruutli is approaching the game with an air of almost zen-like calm just days after his country’s dreams were shattered.

“You have to take it how it is. For us, there is nothing guaranteed and we started our qualifying games and saw what happened. We are not at the level where success is guaranteed or have such a high-class team.

“That is our level and we have to be happy that we achieved this result. We didn’t do anything wrong, just some personal mistakes. The plan will be almost the same.”

His quizzical stare when asked if there was any chance of his team scoring four goals said everything. Wins in Serbia, Slovenia and Northern Ireland gave them this opportunity at making Poland and Ukraine next summer but their motivation may well stem from a desire to show the first encounter was not an accurate assessment of their abilities.

If not, perhaps the premature talk of Ireland’s chances at Euro 2012 will prompt a response as the Estonians.

“4-0 gives the team a clear path normally,” said Ruutli. “Maybe Ireland will qualify but you go and try to win the game and this is what we will do.”