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A game against the old enemy of England is a great occasion for the players of Ireland to be a part, according to Stephen Kenny, although in reality the manager has an eye on next year’s World Cup qualifiers.
Wembley Stadium will host the two teams behind closed doors on Thursday night, and while the match gives the new head of the national team the opportunity to assess his team’s progress since their first game in September, it can also affect classification. before the qualifying draw for the World Cup.
The match with England is a rare international friendly match in this era of the League of Nations, and Kenny opted to take on the world’s number four team rather than stage a morale-boosting first win against a poor team in Dublin.
Kenny is looking at the big picture and is happy to risk taking a step back in qualifying if his team loses in London on the grounds that he will ultimately defend his team as they continue to move into the 2021 campaign.
“The bigger picture has always been the qualifying round for the World Cup,” Kenny said at the pre-match press conference.
“These are big games, every game is important. It is well documented with the World Cup seed status and our status in League B of the Nations League.”
And while Kenny has lost more players as a result of injuries and the coronavirus, which has reappeared its ugly head for the second time in successive international windows, again the coach remains optimistic as he believes that others in the squad can benefit and benefit from the opportunity.
And Kenny is clearly looking beyond his current work team by checking the name of young aspiring players like Troy Parrott and Michael Obafemi with spots still up for grabs as he tries to stamp his signature on the Irish unit.
“The two players discarded today would feature prominently in our image for the World Cup, without a doubt,” said Kenny, speaking of Callum Robinson, who is missing after a positive Covid test, and Aaron Connolly, who suffered a hamstring injury. Pressure. They both miss all three window games.
“People like Troy Parrott and Michael Obafemi if they get regular games, they are definitely players who could come into the picture,” Kenny continued.
“We have a core group of players with international experience here, so it will be interesting to see how we get through all three games.
“One of the things about having players discarded the way they were, it opens up an opportunity for other players. It’s interesting to see what that brings.”
Despite the size of Ireland’s squad for this game, there is no recognized left-back available for the Wembley match, as Enda Stevens is injured.
Cyrus Christie was called up to the team, however the defender is more used to playing on the right side, while newer team member Derrick Williams, who can play either the middle half or the left back, is injured.
Matt Doherty, of course, has played in that position for his previous club, the Wolves, and by moving the now Spurs defender to the opposite side of the field, he will allow the coach to play Seamus Coleman in his preferred right-back position.
The coach has previously indicated that he can play three at the rear, and while he said he has yet to choose his side, in Stevens’ absence he will most likely put it off for another day.
“I haven’t picked the team yet, to be honest, but of course Seamus is a really important part of our team, for sure,” Kenny said.
“We have a few options. The left back has been a problem. Derrick Williams has been injured. Other left backs like Johnny Hayes at Aberdeen and Greg Cunningham at Cardiff have been injured lately.
“Ryan Manning had a very good season last season with QPR. Because he was moving, he was frozen and has only played 70 minutes since the start of this season with Swansea.
“But he is a very good player and has a lot of training under his belt, so he will join Jack Byrne before the trip to Wales and the game against Bulgaria.”
Heading into the game, Kenny believes the players are looking forward to playing old foes at the iconic Wembley Stadium.
And while Kenny acknowledges that the current England team will be a very difficult proposition, there will be an opportunity to create a bit of history for his team, as Ireland have only beaten England twice, and not since Euro 88 and the goal from Ray Houghton.
“The players really love to play for Ireland, they are very proud. Every international game is important and when they are ruled out due to injury, they are really devastated.”
“We’re [looking forward to it]. Players have the opportunity to play at Wembley against England.
“Ireland have never won at Wembley. We won twice against England, once at Stuttgart and once at Goodison 70-odd years ago, so it’s been a long time.”
“England are in good shape and we have played well at times, especially against Slovakia, but we have not scored goals, of course.
“So we are looking forward to getting there and we want to do well.”
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