John Fallon: Latvia friendly timely for Ferguson and Hodge to stake claims for France
PRODIGY: Joe Hodge of Wolverhampton Wanderers. Pic: Isaac Parkin - WWFC/Wolves via Getty Images
FRIENDLY misfire. Irish fans are entitled to feel a tad shortchanged attending non-competitive matches at Aviva Stadium over recent years.
In 2022, Belgium rocked up with what transpired to be just three of starters of the team that began their World Cup campaign seven month later.
There was scant anticipation about Lithuania, ranked 137 in Fifa’s standings, visiting in the same window and very little enthusiasm inside the ground either until Troy Parrott supplied a rescue remedy at the death.
Erling Haaland — rather than Norway — was the driver of ticket sales for the November date and his withdrawal robbed the occasion of any lustre, especially when Ireland crashed to their 11th defeat of the Stephen Kenny era.
So when the drumroll for the warm-up to the Euro 2024 qualifier against France crescendoed with Latvia named, there once again wasn’t much to be excited about.
Albeit Ireland were restricted in choice due to the double-header of qualifiers in that window, valid questions arise about using another lowly Baltic state, ranked four places above their Lithuanian neighbours, as rehearsal for the might of Les Bleus.
French preparation for the Dublin duel entails a battle against fellow World Cup quarter-finalists Netherlands.
Latvia operate on a different level, stocked with home-based players and who’ve won just three of their last 30 qualifiers, two against Gibraltar. Kenny was on the money when he vowed to avoid a “gruelling” test before the friendly opponent was named.
On the face of it, limited value would accrue, particularly when the manager had suggested a “mix and match” policy on selection.
This time last year, Ireland had a settled team, reflected by nine of the same side starting the last game of 2022 against Luxembourg and the 2023 opener with Belgium.
It may well have been identical, only for injuries to Gavin Bazunu and Adam Idah.
Twelve months on and it’s a different story — upgrading a seemingly non-event against the Latvians into an audition for the fervour of France.
Few positives could be gleaned from 2022 — bar the summer stroll over Scotland — and the scarcity of chances in the November dross, so long Kenny’s get-out, exposed faultlines in the team’s core.
Thankfully, candidates are at the ready.
Any doubts about the readiness of Evan Ferguson and Joe Hodge for senior international service have been quelled since the Premier League resumed, each contributing to their respective team’s revival.
Unfortunately for Frank Lampard, it was at Goodison Park where both demonstrated the traits Ireland were lacking in their armoury. Hodge’s fusion of tackle timing with incisive passes is a joy to behold while Ferguson possess the attributes to become the focal point of the attack while still in his teens.
Hodge being overlooked for the November games wasn’t surprising, given Kenny’s soundbites at the Euro draw a few weeks previously but his elevation is beyond debate at this stage. And that’s not just a squad call-up but inclusion in the team on March 23.
The notion of two natural ballplayers in Josh Cullen and Hodge sitting as midfield pivots in front of the back three ought to relieve an Irish faithful alarmed by the side’s habit of ceding possession.
Retaining the ball is a must for thoughts of usurping the French and Dutch to be even entertained.
Ferguson is further along the pecking order, blooded with cameos against Norway and Malta. If any of the incumbents like Callum Robinson, Chiedozie Ogbene, or Adam Idah were in scoring form, the argument for experience could be tolerated, yet the fact is Ferguson has displayed not just through his pair of Premier League goals a proficiency for rattling top-level defenders.
Arsenal’s William Saliba is unlikely to relish marshalling him again if he breaks into the French defence.
Other spots are up for grabs too, most evidently at left-wing back where Robbie Brady’s deliveries, both in flow and from deadballs, were notably absent while he was demoted to the bench.
However, it is the pair of relative newcomers that the Latvian limber-up is most pivotal to — evoking parallels with 15 years ago.
Back in 2008, early in the Giovanni Trapattoni era, a B international provided the platform for fringe players to press their claims. A couple, such as Darron Gibson and Andy Keogh, did enough to warrant involvement in that World Cup campaign but the biggest winner was Keith Andrews. A latecomer, that outing cemented his spot alongside Glenn Whelan as Trap’s preferred midfield axis.
This friendly in 10 weeks’ time present a similar roadmap for new beginnings to this pairing.
Interestingly, talk about new dawns, of an altogether different hue, overshadowed Latvia’s last meeting with Ireland almost a decade ago.
The centre of attention on that occasion wasn’t a precocious gem, rather Roy Keane’s return to the Ireland fold as assistant manager.
Visiting boss Marian Pahars spent his pre-match press conference recalling his Premier League battles with Keane as a Southampton player, while the Irish build-up peaked with a packed press conference at the Grand Hotel in Malahide.
It can be taken as given that the current supremo, Dainis Kazakevičs, will be asked his opinion on the latest phenomenon to consume Irish football. We can also take it that the impact of Hodge and Ferguson will endure beyond Keane’s comeback.
How much will the outcome of Ireland’s Euro 2024 campaign be influenced by goalkeepers?
Let’s not start gloating but if the primary criteria centred on netminders, France and Netherlands would be trailing the Boys in Green in the table before a ball is kicked.
Gavin Bazunu and Mark Travers, despite the hail of bullets they face at their struggling clubs, remain Premier League first-choices and all Caoimhín Kelleher has needs to join them is request a loan from Liverpool.
Not unexpectedly, Hugo Lloris this week quit the French squad, his trophies collected and work done at 36. A desire to complement his haul with a Champions League medal at Tottenham was a natural factor.
That leaves Didier Deschamps with slim pickings for the upcoming campaign – starting with a bang against the Dutch and Ireland in March. Steve Mandanda will turn 38 that week and operating in the shadows at Rennes while the other No.1 brought to the World Cup, Alphonse Areola, remains as West Ham United’s understudy. He’s started just two Premier League games this term, most recently in October.
Add in the fact Alban Lefont of Nantes is uncapped and untried at international level and Mike Maignan is out of favour at AC Milan and their problem area is apparent.
Ronald Koeman isn’t exactly flush either with Oranje. Louis van Gaal was vindicated to an extent by vaulting late bloomer Andries Noppert into the World Cup fray but the lack of offers for the Heerenveen keeper since underline his limitations. One potential solution is recalling Jasper Cillessen, the 33-year-old stalwart so stung by his exclusion from the trip to Qatar that he fled to Spain for solitary time.
Ireland may not have a player in the cailbre of Virgil Van Dijk or Kylian Mbappé but, hey, unload your shots and likely most will be saved. Mercies, including small ones, are gleefully embraced.
Anybody who confused the silence to Vera Pauw’s denials on historical issues while working in the US with inaction saw reality unfold yesterday.
The Ireland women’s coach last month emphatically refuted allegations contained within a report that during her time as Houston Dash coach had weight-shamed players and attempted to exert excessive control over their eating habits.
Given the report was jointly commissioned by the national league and the players’ union, Pauw wondered aloud who she could pursue legally for tarnishing her name.
All went quiet until a follow-up to the Joint Investigative Report emerged, including Pauw among eight personnel sanctioned. In her case, any future employment within the US league is conditional on “acknowledging misconduct, participating in training, and demonstrating a sincere commitment to correcting behaviour”.
The Dutchwoman has said she was considering retirement before the FAI convinced her to take the post in 2019 and considering the World Cup is ahead, she’s unlikely to be canvassing for jobs beyond this post.
Still, by US football authorities making full use of their ‘City Hall’ status by issuing punishments, the accusations continue to linger and will doubtless be referenced as the World Cup beckons.
In this pinball of claim and counterclaim, the onus is now on Pauw to make the next move.
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