I did, indeed, stay up until nigh on 6am last night to watch Ireland's 3-2 home defeat at the hands of World Cup semi-finalists, Uruguay. It was late, I was wrecked, but it was a cracking match. Come on Trap! That's the way we want to see Ireland play! Ok, we lost and, although we were really nervy against Macedonia, we did at least win that one. I get it. The result is more important than the performance, etc. BUT, like most Ireland fans, I really believe we can play like we did against Uruguay and win, more often than not. Ten of the players who started for the visitors in the World Cup semis were on show last night. In sharp contrast, we had a very experimental line-up in action, including an entirely second-string back five (which showed).
In saying that, there are a lot of things that our veteran Italian maestro does get right, and the media get wrong. Here's just a sample:
1. Not playing Ciaran Clark against Macedonia. Ok, Kilbane is about 90 now and plying his trade in the third-tier of English football with Huddersfield Town. However, Clark was all at sea last night. Kilbane has been there, done that - Clark's time will come, but last weekend was still too soon.
2. Sticking with Shane Long. Long has been a virtual ever-present in Trapattoni's squads, often chosen ahead of more popular alternatives such as Stokes, Walters, or Best, in the past. Now with Keane increasingly unavailable, Long looks a key part of our system, and a threat should either Doyle or our all-time record goal-scorer be unavailable.
3. Favouring Green over Gibson. I might get stick for this, but I think it's time to face facts about Gibson. He clearly has potential. He clearly has more in his locker than Green. He clearly plays at a higher level (even though his first-team chances at Old Trafford are extremely limited). The problem is, that when he plays for Ireland, he gives possession away so cheaply, so often. Green doesn't do very much of anything, which I think is the lesser of two evils.
I guess to sum up, what I'm saying is that, although Trapattoni is often chastised for his selection of the same players, his conservatism, his stubbornness in refusing to do what the majority of Irish fans and media would prefer, he gets it right a fair amount of the time (with hindsight). He sees these guys in action, he has a clear vision of how he wants them to play, and he still manages to surprise us from time to time. The frustrating part is that when we see Ireland playing confident, attacking football, it reminds us that we are capable of it, and makes us wish we could see it more often...
From the Republic of Ireland, to my beloved FC Seoul. On Saturday at 5pm (hopefully with my replacement season ticket in hand), I'll be at Sangam World Cup Stadium for our latest K-League encounter with 2009 league champions, Jeonbuk Motors. Quick recap: 3 leagues games in; one point; one goal (an o.g.); FC Seoul lying 15th in a 16-team division. A friend recently asked me what happened, so here's my diagnosis, my own humble opinion:
1. Hwangbo Kwan. Having romped to the title last season under Nelo Vingada, the club, in it's infinite wisdom, appears to have made a financial decision to bring in an inexperienced former international (he scored a screamer against Spain in 1990, don't you know?), whose only previous managerial experience has been at Japanese J-League Division 2 side, Oita Trinita. Before moving to the K-League champions, he managed them to a 15th place finish - out of 19 teams. They had just been relegated from J1 the season before...
So far at Seoul he has looked indecisive, unsure of his best eleven, has shown faith in some of our more shocking fringe-players, and managed to look utterly ridiculous in his FC Seoul scarf and drooping stance as each match has worn on. Despite the fact that he has some of the league's most talented players at his disposal (Dejan, Adi, Lee Seung Ryeol, etc.), he hasn't shown that he is able to switch things around once it's clear that his ill-considered 'Plan A' is falling to pieces.
Some might point to two good results in the AFC Champion's League, but in the 3-0 home win against Hangzhou Greentown, it looked more a matter of them being rubbish, than us being great. Had they taken a few of their opportunities at 1-0, it could have been a very different story.
2. Missing players. Yes, we have a strong squad in comparison to some of our rivals (with the exception of Suwon who appear to have frightening strength in depth this season), but we are DEFINITELY missing three key players at the moment. Djeparov played our first two K-League matches, but was missing as we were hammered away at Chunnam before the international break. Against Daejeon, he was our one shining light: always looking for the ball; popping up all over the pitch; creative searching balls that some of his team-mates simply don't have the football brain to anticipate; and even getting into goalscoring positions (his finishing not being his strong point, however). Added to that, we are without Choi Tae Wook, who owned the right wing following his signature during last season. His current stand-in, Kim Tae Hwan, has been a disgrace to the shirt in the matches in which I have seen him 'play'. Strong words, I know... Last but not least, there's no Ha Dae Sung, our Paul Scholes-eque terrier in midfield. Choi Hyun Dae has improved from last season in that position, but we need that battling, goalscoring threat back, and soon.
One could also point to the fact that we have lost Choi Hyo Jin (my favourite FC Seoul player last season) and Kim Chi Woo to Sangju Sangmu (for their military service). It's not just the novelty of playing in a new city in front of big crowds that sees them perched at the top of the K-League, although I don't expect it to last.
3. A dispirited and isolated Dejan. There have been rumours that he's not getting on with new signing, Molina, who apparently thinks he's too greedy (which may be partly true). Whether or not that's true, the Montenegran marksman has cut a forlorn figure up front, without the support of a credible attacking partner, and clearly lacking the conviction that had us expecting those 30 yards screamers from him last season. He's a proven goalscorer in the K-League, but his record up until then was a lot less convincing. Let's hope that this is just a blip because, with Molina having failed to settle thus far, it's not clear where else the goals are going to come from.
But you know what? It's not all that bad! We are still the reigning champions. Yes, we lost our opener at home, but that was to Suwon, who look fairly strong this season (but lacking in consistency). And although we have only picked up one point from a possible nine so far, no other team has looked utterly convincing. Sure, Jeonbuk have looked decent. Yes, it is worrying to see Jeju starting so ominously, and quietly, well. Of course, Derek Asamoah adds a whole new dimension to Pohang. I can't argue either, that Suwon have brought in a lot of quality, and were by far the better team against us in our league opener. Still, a win against Jeonbuk on Saturday and a few other results go our way, confidence will be back. Maybe the manager just needs time to settle? Stamp his authority and system on the team? A goal for Dejan and they could start flowing. Molina could show us the form that made him such a feared opponent when he was at Seongnam. We get our injured players back, momentum behind us, all we need is a place in those coveted top six positions.
It hasn't been the greatest of starts, but after what we witnessed from Seoul last season, it certainly isn't time to throw in the towel... not just yet.
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