I suppose they are technically U-21s but still
:rolleyes:
Interesting to see that theyāre all at top flight clubs. The underage structures in Spain do seem structured around the top 20 or 30 clubs - there arenāt that many players I can think of who join the top clubs from lower divisions.
Astonishing work Athetlic Bilbao perform in bringing through Basques constantly. To sustain an everpresent La Liga club from the pool of players available and a horrible transfer market open to them (they get charged a ridiculous premium for anyone they do buy because the selling club know their limitations) is some achievement.
Really looking forward to this game tonight. I think we will be hard to beat. We have played some good sides and have always looked solid enough. Thought we played a bit more football against the Czechs in comparison to Romania match where we looked for easy ball too often. I hope we revert to style we used against Czechs as otherwise it could just be wave after wave of Spanish attacks.
Quick reminder: 18.45 kick-off off and thatās based on Aviva Stadium time. Live on RTE and Eurosport.
Czechās into the final, just after wrapping up a 4-2 win over Serbia with a goal injury time
Getting a lesson here. Two excellent goals but theyāve played us off the park.
Well beaten by the better team
:lol: :lol: :lol:
Under 21 squad named for a friendly with Austria next week.
The European Championship qualification starts in September so it would be good to give qualification a decent shot for once.
Robbie Bradyās exclusion from the Under 19 side hasnāt hurt him and Aidan White is a guy who just declared for Ireland the other week.
Ian McLoughlin - MK Dons FC
Aaron McCarey - Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
Enda Stevens - Shamrock Rovers FC
Aidan White - Leeds United FC
Richie Towell - Celtic FC
Shane Duffy - Everton FC
Gavin Gunning - Blackburn Rovers FC
Rob Kiernan - Wigan Athletic FC
Niall Canavan - Scunthorpe United FC
Adam Barton - Preston North End FC
Jeff Hendrick - Derby County FC
Conor Clifford - Chelsea FC
Mark Connolly - Bolton Wanderers FC
Daniel Kearns - Dundalk FC
Aaron Doran - Inverness CT FC
Joe Mason - Cardiff City FC
Sean Scannell - Crystal Palace FC
Robert Brady - Manchester United FC (On-loan to Hull City FC)
Does that break up only mean 4 midfielders in the squad Rocko or is it just some dodgy pasting? Donāt know enough about them to know all their positions.
Kearns and Doran would be wingers/wide midfielders Mac. Towell has also played a lot of his football in central midfield, although he played right back for Ireland and on loan at Hibs last season, I think he is much more natural in midfield.
Was impressed by Enda Stevens last night. Losing Conor Henderson is a big blow for us though.
How long is Daniel Kearns likely to stay in the LOI for? Will he move on before the end of this season? Iāll admit that I hadnāt really heard of him before the Dublin Super Cup but he looks very tidy and looks to have a lot of potential. Has he been linked with any moves across the water?
The Belfast youngster was alot more impressive than the highly rated James McClean is the recent Dublin Super Cup. Iām very disappointed that the Derry man is in the O6 squad for the forthcoming Faroes match, poor form from him in this day and age. Also, whatās the story with fellow Derry man Shane Ferguson? Has he formally switched his allegiances yet?
That White lad from Leeds made his debut for them as a 16 year old a few years ago and there were big things expected but donāt think he has pushed on and played that much since, think he went out on loan last year
[quote=āMr. Totti, post: 26623ā]
Also, whatās the story with fellow Derry man Shane Ferguson? Has he formally switched his allegiances yet?[/quote]
Numerous media outlets have reported he has indeed.
I thought this was the case Larry but the fact that heās not in the u-21 squad makes it still seem a bit unclear, maybe heās injured.
[quote=āMr. Totti, post: 26626ā]
I thought this was the case Larry but the fact that heās not in the u-21 squad makes it still seem a bit unclear, maybe heās injured.[/quote]
BBC Ireland were saying in May it looked like he was switching after not returning Worthingtonās phone calls. Perhaps isnāt that clear cut though and Scotland have been in touch with him too apparently as one of his parents is Scottish. He is injured at the moment I think. Iād say we are favourites anyway. Below from Derry Journal.
SHANE FERGUSON has refuted claims that Northern Ireland supremo, Nigel Worthington, publicly stated that the Eglinton-based defender ignored his calls and he insists he remains undecided over his international future.
SIMON COLLINS reports
The 19-year-old is the latest player to become embroiled in an international tug-of-war between the IFA and FAI over recent weeks and despite reports suggesting he was bound to declare for the Republic of Ireland, Ferguson yesterday insisted he would take his time before making a decision of such magnitude.
Worthington appeared earlier this month to have given up on the possibility of keeping hold of the Newcastle starlet, claiming he had frustratingly made several failed attempts to contact Ferguson.
āThe situation with Shane is, I and two other officials from the Irish FA have tried to make contact. We have left voice mail messages, text messages and made random calls to Shane. There has been no reply,ā Worthington stated.
However, Ferguson dismissed those claims as āuntrue,ā and revealed he had informed the N. Ireland boss that he wanted time to mull over the decision before pledging his international future with either governing body.
Currently at home in Derry following a remarkable season in the English Premiership with the āMagpiesā, Ferguson was concerned that Worthingtonās comments would have a negative effect on his future relationship with N.Ireland supporters, should he decide to stay north of the border.
Ferguson, who can play on the left side of midfield or in the converted left-back role he has adopted at Newcastle, suggested that the IFA were ājumping the gunā before he had actually made a final decision.
āI havenāt made a decision yet and some of the stuff Nigel Worthington has said wasnāt true and that annoyed me,ā added Ferguson. āHe said something about me not talking and ignoring calls from him and thatās not true.
āI spoke to him and told him I wanted to wait until the summer and have a think about things and then Iāll make my decision. I told him that early before I was even home for the break and heās come out and said this stuff. Heās probably made me out to look bad.ā
Whether or not Worthingtonās comments have forced the hand of the youngster remains to be seen, but Ferguson is adamant that he will take everything into consideration during his well earned summer break before making his final decision.
āItās just a hard decision and Iāll have to sit and think about it over the summer. People are jumping the gun and thinking Iāve done it already but nobody has heard me say anything about it.ā
The ongoing eligibility row has soured the relationship between the IFA and FAI following high profile cases involving Derry born players, Darron Gibson and Shane Duffy in recent years.
Incredibly Ferguson is the third Derry lad plying his trade in the Premiership to find himself at the centre of the controversy but there is still some hope he will decline the invitation from the Republic of Ireland and refuse to switch his allegiance from the North.
The FAIās Chief scout, Don Givens, admitted that the FAI had been in contact with Ferguson but would not be drawn on how far down the line negotiations had gone.
Ferguson has already played at senior level for N. Ireland when coming on as a substitute in a 3-0 defeat against Italy in Pisa in June 2009.
He has represented the north at various youth levels, however, he still is eligible to declare for the south given that the Italy match was a friendly fixture.
What age is Robbie Brady?
19
Was captain of the under 19 set up til he was dropped come the elite qualifying stage for not returning a phonecall/call up from Doolin
Looks a talented player, resembles a young Damien Duff in the way he plays the game.