Republic of Ireland Team 2023/24 [old thread]

It's the substitutions and choice of player that's the big issue. Ferguson should have gotten a half hour, same for Smallbone and Coventry. We do not need to know anything more about Robinson, Hendrick, Brady or Browne. A half each for 2 of the goalkeepers wouldn't have been bad either.

There's no point just trying them against Malta in what, on paper, should be an easy game.

SK is just making a rod for his own back with team selections now.

Disappointed to see Brady and Hendrick coming on. I thought Robinson should have been substituted early as he was very poor. Comical defending for the winning goal. Its a huge job Kenny has to make a team from this squad.

Updated Stephen Kenny record: 29 games; 7 wins, 10 draws, 12 defeats.

We were deservedly beaten by a Norway side that rested their talisman and world class player. Didi Hamann is correct: that first half was as bad as we've ever seen. It's a good thing Haaland wasn't there because, aside from him battering us, the apologists that make up Kenny's pals in the media would have said he was the difference between them and us. That excuse can't be made now. In reality, a competent coach could have got the win against that outfit tonight.

We have not made any progress since the McCarthy era and we're going nowhere under this regime. Beating a Malta side ranked 168th in the world won't paper over cracks that have been on show for a long time now. He needs to go. I don't want to hear 'who would we get?' as an excuse. Once we've established the coach ain't up to it - and he's not - move 'em on, draw up a list of candidates, and choose the best one on the list. It's not rocket science. The bar has never been lower. To better these standards, the next coach needs an overall win rate above 24%, and a competitive record better than 4 wins in 21. Hardly mission impossible.

I don't see how he deserves minutes and Hogan doesn't. He's only played one league cup game this season.

Doh, my bad.

Jaysus we couldn't lose to Malta. I don't see that happening. A dreadful 0-0 at worst, possibly.

The hate for Brady is strange, he was our best player against Armenia.

Kenny fairly honest in his interview for change.

Edit - except when he said he would not accept it was lack of urgency in first half.

Ya it's different approach and same problem.

We have lots of decent players that will work hard but we have absolutely no one who can really break a team down.

Kenny actually just said everything we done wrong and then everything we done right later on. He wants the ball to be moved faster so why is it not happening.

Compared to previous interviews he was a bit better. But I think needs to lift the players out of it now and again.

The only positive from tonight is that the Stephen Kenny disaster of an appointment is coming closer to the end. He wouldn't even get a job interview at League 2 level.

It's been said a million times but I've no idea how people think a new manager is going to improve the team.

We have a squad made up of a couple of relegation zone PL players, PL players who don't get major playing time and the rest are mostly mid/lower level Championship. We don't have a single outstanding player like Odegaard who can control midfield and create chances.

I don't see many players worth experimenting on quite frankly.

The lack of speed to our play is what makes it painful to watch. And there is no risk to our play. Norway where also terrible.

First half was as bad as you'll see entertainment wise. We where good from half time up until our goal and reverted back to the same again straight after, happy for the draw which was the saddest part. It's a friendly, try to win at least. When we made our subs, O Dowda stayed as far as way as possible and Obafemi switched from right sided forward to the left side to waste time. Molumby stopped, bent over, pulled his socks down and removed his shin pads after his number went up. He was met with a mixed reaction from the crowd. Not the reactions of players or a team looking to win.

A disappointing effort from both teams.

Ya you are probably right sadly.

No we haven't. When Jack made us "hard to break down" people went nuts because it was the wrong way to play.

I don't think we were ever that good from set pieces either or at least I don't remember many goals from them historically. You can't be good in the air if you don't have the big players and that is not Kenny's fault or can't be fixed by another manager. And the one thing we still are is hard working.

Practically everything you listed is just a mindset of a certain generation who happen to be a large part of the Boards demographic.

One player for a few years (years we were sht) does not amount to some sort of national tradition spanning the history of Irish football.

Its a stupid idea that Brazil are always this or Italy are always that. All it does is hamper sides.

I never said Kenny's team is the way it always was. I am saying there is no such thing as the way it always was.

What can Kenny or any Irish manager do to change our players to be as good in the air as those players. Is that something you actually think can be done.

What were these important goals. I honestly don't remember many from set pieces. Not outside of Duffy at least.

Crowd went very quiet when Hendrick was lining up to come on.