Republic of Ireland Team 2023/24 [old thread]

I agree with your statement up until the end, "Kenny isn’t the only good young manager that will do a job for a half a million a year"

I wouldn't call Stephen Kenny good or young.

One minute you say its about the result. Read back through this thread, you said it more than once.

When they get a result, its now about the style!

Thanks for giving me a laugh, because I needed it. Have you any more jokes?

I think Kenny has to stay. But its going to be a nightmare. Zero progress on consistently putting together results and performances. He has the game management of a picnic table. Its appaling that ogbene sits on the bench. Hourihane is put on. Hendrick is left on. Manning untried is left sitting at home in swansea. Shape totally wrong. We needed to commit more forward from early to try and score. He is way to rigid.

Definitely agree with Manning being the correct addition to the squad at very least. A much better defender than Brady and McClean, and decent in attack too. Has a good understanding with Obafemi at club level as well, which is no harm.

I'd still lean towards Doherty on the right - as long as he can start getting some time at Spurs. Have to keep in mind for this window that he's not played for months. If Conte keeps to his word and does bring him back into the fold after this international break, then he should stay a viable option. Elsewhere, I really hope Ebosele can kick on... has all the tools to be a great wing back, but just needs to continue progressing. Would worry he won't see much time in Italy though. With a it of luck might get a loan to the championship (or even Serie B) in January.

Parrott is a another worry. Was hoping he might bag at least one tonight to get himself going again but was utterly ineffective. Seems to be spinning his wheels at club level as well.

Who would you go full back? If we are to change from the current system.

Who? Coleman back in? Doherty back there?

Who comes on for Molumby, well we were controlling the game so comfortably that putting Browne in made the most sense. Go to a 2 in the middle if he wanted and put Browne or Knight as the advanced cm.

Molumby needs to sort out his tackling, game management etc. He's so fcukin hot headed. Takes away from anything good he does for us. His loss was the catalyst for us conceding twice. Hourihane has no legs, is ponderous, shirks responsibility and just offers nothing. I'd have Kilkenny (even without club football), Coventry and Smallbone straight into the November squad ahead of him and get them bedded in for the qualifying campaign to come.

The result is what matters.

I think the kenny boys will gave to admit that was an shocker from him tonight and his changes and lack of could have cost us the game.

Where was the progress tonight?

Jaysus. When trap and mon put the blame on the players shoulders they were castigated.

Some people want it both ways.

Kenny " An exceptional performance at times".

Kenny " we created lots of chances"

No.

So, just to recap:

• We shouldn't have picked the younger players and denied them the chance to play in the U21s playoff instead of this nothing game.
• We shouldn't have brought on the older players, we should have kept the younger lads on.
• Bazunu would have won us the U21s penalty shootout.
• Bazunu nearly cost us the senior match.
• At 2-0, we should have brought off some defenders for attackers and gone for even more goals.
• Our defending was shocking at 2-0, we should have played more sensibly to hold onto the lead.
• The penalty on Saturday was stonewall, you can't hold your arms out like that in the box, that's always a penalty.
• That was never a penalty tonight, yes the Armenian defender held his arms out, but how is he meant to avoid handling the ball from that range?
• There's no point in creating chances if you can't finish them.
• You can't rely on lucky penalties, you have to be able to create more chances.
• Saying we performed well in previous games isn't good enough, we need to get results at all costs.
• A result at all cost isn't good enough, we need to be performing better than that.

Can't blame someone for telling Tony to fk off there.

As if any manager will start naming who is and isn't a leader.

Maradona said Messi was not a 'leader'.

But seriously, Kenny needs to get smarter in these interviews, because it feeds back to the players.

Kenny could simply have said games and experience bring leadership, as well as attitude etc etc.

The one thing I think at least, is that most of us will be on the same page from now!

The Euro campaign was always the one being targeted as the campaign to compete in. A bad campaign there and I think everyone will agree it’s time to move on. I will say that challenging for qualification depends entirely on the group we get, though. If we get Spain and France as our higher seeds there’s no manager on earth I would imagine who would get us to qualify then.

Kenny set the standard when he said the aim was winning the group and promotion.

Instead it was a relegation battle we nearly lost.

That's the reality.

Damien Delaney 'Flabbergasted' after the 3-2 win v Armenia.

The fella seems genuinely annoyed, with what happened. And he normally seems like an easygoing sort of fella.

Sammy smodzics might have to be looked at lads. Jaysus its poor.

Keith Tracy thinks the Armenian fella was pushed and that is why he handballed.

Which probably explains why the Armenians went mental.

It's never been worse?

I don't think you realise that words mean something and you don't get to keep posting melodramatic meaningless tripe.

Did you enjoy the tension in the stadium tonight?

That penalty was sweet as we dominated that match bar 5 crazy minutes or so and fully deserved to win. That's not to say everything was perfect and we do have problems that Kenny needs to solve regarding the amount of goals we're conceding from shots outside the box and firing Hourihane into the sun. And others that no manager could really solve such as the lack of options at left back/wing back and creativity in midfield.

Ah your moulding a narrative there with all of that.

We have lost to luxembourg who we should be comfortably beating and Armenia. Failed to beat Azerbaijan.