Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
IT’S DO OR DAI
O’neill: Nothing left to think about.. we either win or kiss dream goodbye
OUT from a dense fog of head-spinning permutations came clarity.
No longer do Martin O’neill, his players and the Green Army have to sweat on results from other groups going their way.
Scotland’s costly 2-2 draw in Slovenia yesterday means O’neill’s charges will be guaranteed a World Cup play-off if they can beat Wales in Cardiff tonight.
That, of course, is a big if and, fundamentally, not a great deal has changed in terms of what Ireland have to do.
It’s still a deathmatch and Ireland must win against the odds, otherwise it is curtains. A draw is no use.
O’neill said last night: “There are a number of scenarios but one is very plain for us – we have to win the game and it’s as simple as that.
“Sometimes when it’s that clear it can obviously clear your mind as well.”
Debate has raged about whether international football is dying but tonight’s game illustrates just how much it means to both corners.
And it was a message that O’neill was keen to ram home last night.
“I’m surprised at these thoughts that international football doesn’t matter,” he said. “The World Cup is still the biggest occasion in football.
“It’s not around as often as the Champions League but it’s the biggest competition in the world. I think if you asked players from Brazil, Argentina and Germany, they would say the World Cup is still the top priority. I don’t think it has lost its lustre.”
Yesterday, O’neill reminded his players of what they achieved against Italy at the Euros last summer.
Just like tonight’s scenario, it was win or bust in Lille and Robbie Brady’s late header secured a passage to the Last 16.
“This game compares very favourably,” said O’neill. “We’ve been involved in a lot of big matches.
“We’ve put ourselves in a position where we have to win the game and the ways things are going, Wales are in the same position. It’s all to play for.
“It doesn’t worry me (that Wales are favourites). They’re at home, so they have that advantage but as I said, it’s all to play for. I predict it’ll be wide open in the second-half.
“We have 90 minutes where we have to try to get a goal and, yes, the approach is very similar to Lille, where we knew before the game that a win was the only thing that mattered.
“We played with a lot of verve and determination and closed Italy down very well, and a lot of that will be needed tonight.
“We also created a lot of chances that night and we’ll need to do that again. It’s not that far back in the memory either and the players should really consider it.
“We’ve had big nights in the past, and the recent past. They are still fresh in the memory and the players are ready for it.”
Brady and James Mcclean return from suspension tonight and looks certain to go straight into the team.
Shane Long, who passed up a hat-trick of chances to score against
Moldova, and Callum
O’dowda – despite impressing in that game – may lose out. WALES have failed to score in five of their last six against Ireland, with Jason Koumas netting twice in November 2007. WALES have only won once at home to Ireland – a 2-1 victory in September 1979, with a side featuring Terry Yorath. WALES haven’t won four consecutive matches since a run of six under Mike England in 1981.
ALL three managerial meetings between Martin O’neill and Coleman have ended as draws – two in the Premier League in 2006-07, between O’neill’s Aston Villa and Coleman’s Fulham, while the other was the goalless stalemate at the Aviva Stadium in this campaign.