Nations Cup to be welcomed in place of meaningless friendlies

NOW we know that Martin O’Neill (left) is staying and signing his new contract, Ireland can move on and concentrate on the next qualifying campaign and a new competition.

UEFA want to do away with ‘meaningless friendlies’ and so their plan is to bring a more competitive edge to international matches outside the World Cup and European Championship qualifiers.

Now we have the Nations Cup, four tiers, four leagues, promotion and relegation, trophies and qualifying places at stake. There are pros and cons, of course. Friendly games were ideal to throw a young lad on for 10/15 minutes and give him a cap. That might not happen if there is something at stake in future.

But we’ve all sat through some turgid friendlies in the past — I played in many — and having something at stake provides an edge for managers, coaches, players and of course the paying public.

The competition format means four teams from the different tiers will qualify for the Euro 2020 finals, and that is not to be sniffed at.

The Nations Cup draw is on Wednesday and there are 11 teams in the hat with Ireland, drawn into groups of three. I really hope we get Wales and Northern Ireland.

Irish fans have always travelled well in the past and places like Slovakia, Czech Republic, Bosnia are lovely to visit and good opposition, but I just think internationals closer to home, with a real derby feel to them and a bit of needle, will make this competition even more interesting.