Trap excited by England challenge

Giovanni Trapattoni has challenged his Republic of Ireland players to prove they are every bit as good as England’s in Wednesday night’s friendly at Wembley.

The Italian’s squad is drawn largely from clubs occupying the lower reaches of the Barclays Premier League and the upper reaches of the npower Championship, but they will go head to head with Roy Hodgson’s aristocrats as the two countries meet for the first time since 1995.