FAI...June 2024 Friendlies v Hungary and Portugal

[magpie seanie]

Good post From the Bunker but I think the FAI have to take a lot of the blame for why this is the case. Saipan divided the Irish soccer public but united everyone against the incompetence of the FAI. Any organisation worth its salt would have fought tooth and nail to recover from such a clusterfcuk but the FAI has continued to lurch from balls up to balls up. Staunton. Trappatoni and his contract extension. It's no surprsie any Tom, Dick or Harry thinks they know better - most of them might!!!!

[Asal Mor]

Nail on the head FTB. A lot of it stems from Dunphy. The likes of Dunphy and Brolly have a huge influence on what becomes popular opinion (Hoolahan is a top player, Tyrone are cynical etc.) and it's not a position they deserve.

I watched MOTD recently and thought Alan Hansen seemed very insightful and well-informed compared with the RTE panel. That's how bad they are.

[muppet]

Our National teams expectations are constantly having this negative and almost snide feel over the last couple of years. Players had been accused of not trying, not caring, not up to it! Results have not been glamorous, but they have been sufficient to keep us at the business end of qualifications. Our Pundits, at this stage don't know what they want. They suddenly want McCarthy (son of Jack, as he was known almost in disdain). The man who ran the messiah from a major tournament. They want this lad and that lad playing. There is always some who should be playing, there is always a prodigal son on the bench or not on the squad. He is always the next Pele even though he plays championship football or Reserve football for a Premiership team.

I was sad this week at the way Noel King was treated. He is a good solid Irish football man. I can imagine how proud he was to get the temporary Manager gig of the National squad. It's sad the personal treatment he got especially from the RTE panel. What should have been a happy and proud time of Kings career with two decent performances, has been turned into a sour episode in his career.

As for the RTE panel, has there ever been an ill informed, under researched group to analyse a game. They seem to have little or no idea of any of the National teams that play against us. Understandably most of the waffle from Bill O'Herilihy is rehearsed.

Anyway, the animal we have created from all this negativity is no manager worth his grain of salt will want to be in this fiasco and added to this we will turn the players away.

In the past we prided ourselves in being at one with our national team. In being the 12th man. We were not like the English who compared their Manager to a Turnip. Today we are no better. In fact I think we are worse.

Good post.

Compare the 'I don't know much about Kagastan Bill' with, say, George Hamilton's ability to recognise players and get their names reasonably accurately from the kick-off. Surely a little bit of research is possible for the panellists? Even ask Hamilton to email his notes?

Imagine turning up at work, in any job, where you are giving an analysis on something and saying you don't know much about <enter comically funny wrong name here>.

Time to put the lads out to grass.

We should go Italian style:

[From the Bunker]

Play-off for Brazil

Portugal v Sweden

Ukraine v France

Greece v Romania

Iceland v Croatia

If we had by some miracle finished second, we'd be meeting Portugal?

[Capt Pat]

Ibrahimovic vs Ronaldo should be a good game.

[screenexile]

Martin O'Neill . . .

[ballinaman]

Martin O'Neill . . .

Heard that too. When you have Latvia at home announced yesterday, I felt manager announcement had to follow shortly. Crowd would have be abysmal if King was still in charge.

[rodney trotter]

Mentioned in the papers, that bookmakers suspended bets last night on new manager. Looked like O Neill didn't seem as keen at one stage. Be a good appointment.

[EC Unique]

Delighted that he has accepted the offer.

[AZOffaly]

I'm not a big Martin O'Neill fan, but I do think he will be a great Ireland manager. He will have them playing with spirit, belief and controlled aggression. He'll make sure they have a right cut at it anyway, which is the minimum we should expect of our teams. Talent is out of his control, application, attitude and approach is not. I think he'll be successful, in relative terms.

[Applesisapples]

O'Neill doesn't see him self as a coach or tactician and I'd expect he would appoint good people to these roles. What he does do though is motivation...Good to see an All Ireland team in the making.

[muppet]

O'Neill doesn't see him self as a coach or tactician and I'd expect he would appoint good people to these roles. What he does do though is motivation...Good to see an All Ireland team in the making.

Last few Ireland managers including interims:

Noel King
Trapp
Don Givens
Steve Staunton
Brian Kerr
Mick McCarthy
Wor Jack

Martin O'Neill compares very well that list. Only Trapp would have an unquestionably better pedigree at club level. It will be fascinating to see what he can bring to the international team.

[SHEEDY]

not convinced by martin oneill, hope i'm proved wrong.

[Jell 0 Biafra]

Realistically, probably about the  best we could have expected.

[From the Bunker]

Realistically, probably about the  best we could have expected.

International football does not hold the esteem it once did. Only the high profile countries (kinda) still hold clout.

The Champions League is where it is at for the top tier Managers. After that it is the Premiership.

O'Neill's stock has fallen since stints with Villa and Sunderland.

We are both stuck for choice at the moment, so hopefully we could do each other a big favour.