Trapattoni going nowhere, insists Keane

The consensus might be that last night’s result only papered over the cracks and the manager may still be shown the door, but captain Robbie Keane insisted Giovanni Trapattoni will still be in the dugout come Ireland’s next game at home to Greece next month.

For the second time in over 24 hours, Keane, much like Trap, gave a defiant response when quizzed on the under-pressure manager’s future, claiming the Italian still has the full backing of the dressing room.

“I think if he was the manager after Friday’s game and now after getting a great result tonight, I can’t see him not being the manager,” said Keane, who lasted 80 minutes despite carrying an Achilles injury into the game.

“Listen, our main aim for this campaign was to finish second, we always knew Germany would finish first. There was a good performance from the lads tonight, especially in the second half. Once we got the first goal, we were excellent.

“It was a good reaction from the lads. We all wanted it, myself and the whole team.”

Questioned on whether Trap had given the players any indication on whether he is set to depart, Keane said: “Not at all. Going from the dressing room I would say he will be definitely there. I can’t say the reasons why he cancelled his press conference.”

James McCarthy dedicated the win to the 73-year-old, adding Trap has been ‘brilliant’ to him.

“Definitely, it (the result) was for him. The pressure is on everyone when you are beaten 6-1 but obviously it’s a great win for the boss.

“He has been brilliant to me since I came in. I would like to see him stay on.”

McCarthy shone in the middle alongside Keith Andrews, producing a mature performance which is likely to put severe pressure on Glenn Whelan when the Stoke player returns to fitness.

Having spent much of Friday’s game against Germany chasing shadows, he was allowed to prove his true capabilities in a green shirt, breaking-up play and distributing the ball excellently.

And although there were fears over whether the plastic pitch in Torshavn would affect the Irish players, McCarthy said it actually helped Ireland to get the ball on the deck and pass it around.

“People were complaining about the pitch but we actually got it down and it worked out very well for us.

“Jonathan Walters was superb up top,” the 21-year-old added. “But most importantly, we have come away with the three points.”

Yet at the interval, with the game still deadlocked, those three points looked far from certain against the side ranked 158th in the world.

McCarthy maintained they never lost belief and was delighted to see the hard work pay off after the break.

“We always believe in ourselves. The boss had a chat with us at half-time and said keep playing and the goals will come eventually. When the goal came we played well.

“It was brilliant from the boys. We worked really hard and put a great shift in. We were delighted with the goals. It is a hard place to come and get a result.”