Progress Under Stephen Kenny A Step in the Right Direction
The former Dundalk manager has shown why fans wanted him in the first place.
Stephen Kenny has had a turbulent time as Ireland manager. As the qualifying campaign comes to a close for Qatar 2022, there is still debate over whether he is still the right man for the job.
Nine points from a group containing Serbia, Portugal, Luxembourg and Azerbaijan is not great.
In particular, one point from games against Luxembourg and Azerbaijan in the Aviva Stadium were extremely low points for Irish football.
But the manner in which the team has turned itself around since those disappointments is a testament to the character and work put in by the management staff and the players.
That it was disappointing to come away from the two games against Portugal with only one point to show for it is a great example of how performances improved drastically as the group progressed.
The final flourish of big wins away to avenge dropped points to the weaker teams in the group, with a 0–0 home draw with Portugal sandwiched in between, gives room for optimism.
The men’s Irish team is finally playing a style of football that fans are getting behind.
Up until now, it’s been a results-oriented business, but the tide is turning and fans are embracing this new vision. And, as Italy showed at Euro 2020, it is possible to play well and win.
Kenny’s attitude has been a driving force in all of this. The change in mentality in comparison to previous managers is stark.
Most notably, following the draw in Dublin on Thursday, Kenny was quick to talk up his own players and their ability.
“Callum [Robinson] got Man of the Match but I’d have given it to Shane Duffy. Technically it’s the best I’ve seen him play with the range and the quality of his passing,” said Kenny, via Pundit Arena.
“I thought Seamus [Coleman] was very good and John Egan too. The back three were collectively excellent. Seamus defended very well.
“I think we are improving as a team overall. We still need to improve again, two of the expensive goals we have conceded at home have been long-range efforts [against Luxembourg and Azerbaijan].
“I think collectively the players are getting better, as a team we are getting better and everyone is playing their part. Shane [Duffy] coming into form has been massive for us and in my opinion, I think John Egan could play in the Champions League.”
That final comment regarding Egan was the most significant one of all. Among the high praise, to claim a championship player is good enough for Europe’s premiere competition is a huge difference in attitude to the “we don’t have the players” era.
Kenny’s predecessors always relied on that crutch as an excuse for poor results.
Martin O’Neill always lowered expectations, Mick McCarthy settled for draws with Georgia and Gibraltar as decent results. And let’s not even mention Giovanni Trapattoni’s patronising opinion of the squad he had to work with.
It’s not just been other Irish managers who’ve enjoyed putting down the players. In the past we’ve also seen managers of bigger nations make condescending remarks about Irish football.
Unusually, it was the Luxembourg manager who most recently took this tactic before the sides met on Sunday evening.
But Kenny refused to back down. Pre-match, the 50-year old rejected the claim that his team had reverted to a “British” style of football.
“It’s certainly not accurate,” was Kenny’s reserved response. He, instead, let his team do the talking on the pitch.
For Sunday’s 3–0 win — featuring goals from Shane Duffy, Chiedozie Ogbene and Callum Robinson — the Irish team played some fancy football and scored some beautiful goals.
The one-touch passing in the build up to Ogbene’s goal in particular was like nothing any recent men’s Irish team has accomplished. That they are playing such nice football with inexperienced and youthful players makes it all the sweeter.
Kenny fired back post-match, finally revealing his real feelings about the remarks from Luxembourg’s Luc Holtz.
“We were disappointed he denigrated all the great players who played for Ireland,” Kenny said, via Pundit Arena.
“Denis Irwin was in with us a couple of weeks ago [presenting international caps to the squad]. Roy Keane, John Giles, Liam Brady, Mick McCarthy, Robbie Keane, Damien Duff.
“It is wrong to say they just fight for second balls and played caveman football for a hundred years. It’s wrong to suggest that. We thought he denigrated a lot of players and that was unacceptable.
“The players themselves know, they hear it themselves. We did speak about it. It is unnecessary, but it’s part of life. We have moved on already.”
Not only did Irish football need someone to drag our football into the 21st Century, we also needed an Irish ambassador for our football off the pitch.
This proactive, progressive and complimentary mentality to the treatment of players is so much better for the mood of the team and of the fans. When players are told they’re not good enough, that gets transmitted to the fans and all hope is lost.
The reverse also applies for any opposition managers that think they can insult this country with easy-made off-hand remarks about Britain or being British.
Holtz won’t be the last to try to rile up the Irish camp with such cheap and insulting mind games, but Kenny showed he is more than prepared to handle them.
Kenny’s reign has been about so much more than simply results. There have been lows, but the progress on the pitch has been clear. A corner has been turned in that regard.
That Kenny is also a proud Irishman, and understands the history of football in this country is just an added bonus. It means he is a more complete manager than we first imagined.
Ireland won’t be at Qatar in 2022, but with the progress made, Kenny has earned the chance to show he can bring us back to the global stage.
