Daryl doesn’t want European dream to end

BY his own admission, Dundalk’s European adventure this summer has been ‘the stuff of dreams’ for Daryl Horgan.

Now as the Lilywhites prepare to kick-off their Europa League campaign away to AZ Alkmaar in Holland on Thursday, the winger is anxious to see the club’s epic European journey continue into the New Year.

While Dundalk go into Group D as massive underdogs, Horgan insists his side have what it takes to continue upsetting the odds in Europe by advancing to the last 32 of the competition.

That’s a lofty ambition, he admits, but the 24-year-old insists it is important to aim high.

‘We’re going into all these games to get a result and to try and win them,’ said the Galway man.

‘We want to get out of the group. Obviously that’s massively difficult and we’ll be massive underdogs but we’ve proved that you don’t have to have big fancy stadiums or huge budgets to compete.

‘We’ve competed well and played very good football. We’ve not just hung on and scraped through. We’ve deservedly won games and deservedly got results and, at times, been unlucky. We’ll be confident we can get a result but it will be difficult.

‘The aim right now is to qualify and make it to the last 32. That’s the plan and that always will be the plan. We want to win every game.

‘We’d love to get 18 points. That probably won’t happen but we’re going to go out to win every single game we play in,’ he said.

Horgan’s confidence stems from the famous 3-0 win over BATE Borisov at the start of August and the manner in which Stephen Kenny’s side put it up to Legia Warsaw in the Champions League play-off afterwards. Now he believes his team-mates can step up a level once again.

‘A good start can be half the battle,’ he said ahead of the first Group D game.

‘If we go over there and play the way we can and how we played against BATE Borisov and Legia Warsaw then I’d be confident we can get something.

‘It will be good to test ourselves against different teams. European football is a different style of football. There’s a big mental side to it. You’re constantly watching movements and the players are very, very sharp. They play at a different tempo.

‘It tends to be a bit slower but they can pick it up and drop it at will almost and we’ll have to get to that level as well and switch onto that.

‘At times the league games in Ireland and England are a bit more hustle and bustle. There’s not as much emphasis on keeping the ball as there is in attacking but at times you have to keep the ball for keep ball’s sake rather than looking for a goal. It’s a different style of play but it’s very exciting to play.

‘We’ve a lot of very technical footballers here right throughout the squad. We’ve got different players who can give different things to the team. Everyone can handle the ball and can play and that’s what you need in Europe really but we’re comfortable in possession and that’s key.’

Horgan insists that the European matches, whatever the outcome, will be ‘brilliant’ for all concerned.

‘For the Dundalk fans it’s a massive thing as well. The club was nearly gone a few years ago and now we’re competing in the European group stages, which is fantastic.

‘It’s the stuff of dreams so I’m sure there’ll be a big crowd over and hopefully we’ll give them a show.’

The former Cork City player feels his side are ‘all set’ for the European challenge after a run of six wins at home since exiting the Champions League – a run that has seen them book an FAI Cup semi-final date with Derry City next month and go 10 points clear at the top of the table, albeit with two games more played.

‘It’s more of a four point lead really,’ Horgan said after scoring the second in the 2-0 win over Finn Harps on Monday.

‘That’s the way you have to think of it but it’s the best we could have done. We’re into the FAI Cup semi-final and 10 points clear, albeit with two games extra played, so you can’t ask for much more than that.

‘It was a good three points at the end of the day against Harps. We got a clean sheet and two goals so I suppose you really can’t complain too much.

‘It’s very difficult when a side sets up 5-4-1 and doesn’t really have any ambition to the win the game. It says a lot when their goalkeeper gets booked for time wasting when they’re 1-0 down so it was that kind of game. It was just a game to get over the line in and we did that.

‘We’ve had a couple of very trick games but we’ve come through them and used a good bit of the squad. We’re well set for Alkmaar now on Thursday.

‘It’ll be another tough test. They’re another proposition altogether to what we face in the league. We’ll be massive underdogs going in but we look