Ireland U21 and former Cork City midfielder Matt Healy hoping for double celebration on Friday

While the midfielder is focussing on helping the Republic of Ireland take another huge step towards qualifying for the U21 Euros when they take on Turkey on Friday, he is also hoping his former side Cork City get the win they need away to UCD to secure the First Division title, and a swift return to the Premier Division, later that evening.

Tue, 03 Sep, 2024 - 23:00

Andrew Horgan

Matt Healy is hoping he will have two reasons to celebrate on Friday night.

“I’ve been watching them in the league, I’ve a couple of friends still there as well so fair play to them, they’d a job to do and they’re getting it done. Hopefully they do it Friday,” said Healy.

The playmaker, who won the First Division with City back in 2022, opted for a move to Royal Francs Borains in Belgium last summer rather than remaining with the Rebel Army.

Healy was looking for a new challenge in order to develop as a footballer and it has certainly presented some obstacles for him to navigate.

“It was different, put it that way. They all speak French there, so it was hard at the start, meetings in French, even the dressing room everything was in French, so I didn’t know what was going on.

“But we’ve got a couple of English-speaking lads in the dressing room as well, they help me out and integrate me into the team.

“It’s just thrown me into a new environment know what I mean. European football, there is different styles in European football so I’m trying to learn how European players play compared to standard UK and Irish players, and it is different coaching styles as well, so I think that’s…it’s improved my game in that way learning different styles of play and stuff like that.

“It’s good, I’ve gained a lot of experience, played a football which was the aim going over, I played nearly every game, nearly every minute, that was the most important thing really. I’m enjoying it.”

Matt Healy during a Republic of Ireland U21's media conference at the Pilo Hotel in Ashbourne, Meath. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

And that is the key thing as far as the 22-year-old is concerned. The former College Corinthians star has never been shy of making the move abroad if it’s for the benefit of his playing career, as his move to Ipswich Town aged 16 – a few weeks after he completed his junior cert – can attest.

Two years or so with the Ipswich academy followed by two years or so with their first team followed by two loan spells back home with City led to Healy signing a two-year deal with the Belgian second tier side.

But while he admits he has his sights set on a return to English football one day, his short-term aim is helping the Republic of Ireland reach the U21 European Championships in Slovakia next summer.

Ireland are currently second in Group A ahead of their clash against Turkey in Istanbul before they host Latvia in Tallaght Stadium – rather than Healy’s former home ground of Turner’s Cross which had been used recently – on Tuesday evening.

“It was special, really special. I played a lot of games at Turner’s Cross growing up as a kid and even just with my local team and then for Cork City as well, so just to have my family there was special, I enjoyed every minute of it on that pitch and to get two wins there was really good.

“The Dublin public will come out, same as the Cork public, and get behind us.

“It’s exciting but as we said we all want to get to the Euros, but we have to look at each game at a time.

“We’re not looking at Norway or Italy at the moment, or Latvia, we’re just looking at Turkey on Friday and then we’ll move on to Latvia on Tuesday and hopefully get the job done.”