I wouldn’t detonate a Mart bomb
probably the biggest football hero in this country. That’s the way he played and he’s a big hero. Maybe we have to look at that sometimes.” But the Ireland legend feels there is no reason to stifle the delight at drawing the Danes. Duff said: “It’s staring at you in black and white. It’s the best draw. The Croats and Italians, when you don’t get them you’re rubbing your hands together. “I don’t think we’ll underestimate them and we’re at our best when we’re underdogs and up against it. “But I don’t think Denmark are blessed with an awful lot of quality. They have Christian Eriksen who is world-class but what else?” Duff admits Ireland’s path to the play-off left him with mixed feelings. “It’s a love-hate one,” he said. “We’re all quick to criticise the style of play but we’re in another play-off and it’s probably the best draw. “If we get there it would be the first since Jack Charlton to qualify for two consecutive major tournaments but it’s not pretty at times. We all know that, but maybe with the personnel, that’s just the way Martin goes. Mind you, he’s played a lot like that in his career.” As a TV pundit, Duff pores over footage of Ireland games and takes ‘clippings’ for his own on-screen analysis. And he has seen enough to know Ireland can play a more attractive game. “We can play,” he said. “Clipping games recently, there are spells in the Germany game where we keep it for 20 or 30 passes. Moldova away, again the same. “We can go from one end of the spectrum to another like that.”