Ireland hoping for history against Croatia

Sometimes the result of a simple game of football becomes etched into the folklore of a nation.

Ray Houghton’s winning header against England in 1988; beating Romania on penalties in Italia 90, overcoming the Italians in 1994 and Robbie Keane’s equaliser against Germany in the closing minutes of their 2002 clash.

That’s all it takes to light up a tournament, and then a country - “one big result” - even in the toughest of groups.

"The draw is right up Ireland's street," joked Stephen Hunt recently. "Underdogs all the way.

“But the way we've been in past tournaments, we've always had a big result to get us out of the group.”

And what better time to have it than against Croatia tonight?

Whatever linguistic wires may have been crossed along the way, the importance of Euro 2012, Ireland’s first major tournament for 10 years, is something that has not been lost on manager Giovanni Trapattoni.

“I told them,” he said. “They must be proud about our country and our people, because they've made a big sacrifice to make this trip.

“The players know this. Our country waits. Our supporters wait. It's important we guarantee them total and complete commitment.”

Gone are the days where the Irish team boasts a wealth of stars from the top teams in English football, but here in the days where players’ loyalties are increasingly dictated by the number of zeros on their payslips, there is now an odd comfort in that.

Croatia, for their part, are not brimming with international stars either – but the one notable exception is the man Ireland must stop at all costs.

Spurs playmaker Luka Modric continues to attract admiring glances from Europe’s top clubs, and this tournament will give the want-away star the opportunity to flirt outrageously.

It is imperative that Ireland’s ever-present midfield partnership of Keith Andrews and Glenn Whelan work overtime to deny him the space and time to pull the strings in the middle of the field.

With Modric shackled, Croatia could find their goal chances few and far between.

Given his form since signing for Everton in mid-season, the pressure will be firmly on Everton striker Nikica Jelavic to convert whatever opportunities do come Croatia’s way. His international record of two goals in 19 appearances shows a player with much to prove at this level, however.

Former Arsenal striker Eduardo da Silva will also prove a threat, having scored in their recent 1-1 friendly draw with Norway.

Star striker Ivica Olic has been ruled out of tournament, described by coach Slaven Bilic as a “disaster”.

Another casualty has been attacking midfielder Ivo Ilicevic, who was forced to fly home with a calf injury. “We have lost another important player who is different to most of our team,” groaned Bilic.

Keep those gripes coming, Slaven.

Ireland, by contrast, have enjoyed relatively smooth preparations for the match. Injury niggles, most notably for the talismanic Shay Given, seem to have healed up well.

Of course, everyone looks for omens and patterns. Among the most encouraging is the fact that Ireland have scored in all of their opening matches in major tournaments.

Another is that in head-to-head, Ireland have the upper hand on the relatively young nation, winning two compared to Croatia’s one, with three draws.

Both teams will see this as perhaps their best opportunity to gain a precious three points. But equally, neither can countenance the prospect of defeat.

It could be a gung-ho, end-to-end, winner-takes-all encounter, or a cagey, suspicious game of chess.

If it means the Irish team bores and frustrates the opposition into submission, then that’s just fine with us. The words of those who complain about Ireland’s rigid style will fall on some very deaf ears indeed.

Trapattoni will do things his own way, as always, and isn’t afraid of the seemingly impossible.

“In my life, the rule is: never say never," he said.

“The dream is easy. The dream is easy. After there is 90 minutes, 90 minutes, 90 minutes. After five games, maybe the dream comes true.”

Avoiding a loss after this particular 90 minutes will mean we can we can go to bed and look forward to visiting football dreamland - for another few days at least.

A victory? Well … we’ll already be there.

Score prediction: A glorious 0-0.

Twitter: @KenRooney