Ireland play Greece tomorrow evening in the Aviva Stadium which is a game that hasn't exactly been primed as a glamour tie. It will be the first time the Irish side return to the scene of their German catastrophe. With ticket prices reduced to €20 in the hope of attracting fans, it is widely expected that the stadium will be no where near full capacity. The players have spoken all week of the eagerness to get back in front of the home crown and make amends for what was a record home defeat for the boys in green. But here are three reasons to be positive about tomorrow's game.
Injuries to force Trap's hand
With a whole host of injuries in the Irish camp, manager Giovanni Trapattoni will be forced to play some of the fringe players whom he may not have opted for otherwise. Plenty of these so called 'fringe players' are arguably better than what has been starting for Ireland in recent times. Jonathan Walters was the latest player to cry off as he joins Aiden McGeady and Keith Fahey on the injury list. Highly rated Chelsea youngster Conor Clifford is now called into the squad along with Andy Keogh. It looks likely that Ciaran Clark will finally get a starting role as he benefits from the injuries to Richard Dunne and Sean St-Ledger. Clark has been a regular in the Premiership with Aston Villa and looks primed to be a future Irish centre half. Shane Long is another who looks set for a starting role. Long who has been on the fringes of the first team, has been played out of position time after time. With Robbie Keane not travelling and Walters out injured, Long will be hopeful of finally getting a run out in his preferred position. James McCarthy looks set to continue in his midfield role as well which can only bode well for those around them. With the likes of McClean, Coleman and Brady also hoping for a starting berth, we remain hopeful for a youthful look to the Irish side for tomorrow night's game.
Wes Hoolahan
The Norwich City playmaker finally made a Trapattoni squad after endless campaigning by the Irish public. It is now up to Hoolahan to show the management what he is capable of. The suggestion in Marco Tardelli's press conference was that he will start the game but will possibly only play 45 minutes which doesn't exactly give him an awful lot of time to impress. Hoolahan has impressed for a couple of seasons now and in his debut season in the Premiership last season, he proved that he was more than capable of the step up. He scored four goals and managed seven assists in what can only be described as a very successful season for the Dubliner. Hoolahan's preferred position is behind the front man where he pulls the strings. It remains to be seen if he will be given this role tomorrow evening. As we well know by now, Trap is not adverse to playing players out of position. If Hoolahan can perform to the standards he is capable of, he is more than capable of giving the manager another selection headache.
Greece are a decent side
Greece are ranked 12th in the FIFA world rankings and although the system isn't exactly an even barometer, they are there for a reason. Greece are placed ahead of the likes of Brazil, France and Ireland's Group C main rivals, Sweden. It will no doubt be a stern test for this Irish side but it is certainly a game which we are more than capable of winning. The Greeks have a very similar playing style to Ireland and have enjoyed some great success over the last ten years. The 2004 European Champions performed very well again at last summer's Euros and certainly put up a better challenge than Ireland did, albeit in an easier group. Greece don't exactly offer too many household names but they have included Celtic striker Georgios Samaras and Kyriakos Papadopoulos of German side Schalke in their squad to face Ireland. If Greece beat Ireland tomorrow, questions will again be raised about the manager's future. Whether this will be a good or bad thing is another matter entirely. It seems like Trap will remain in his job until at least the end of this qualifying campaign regardless of the next couple of results. Although I am sure there will be plenty of people secretly hoping for a Greek victory in the hope that the manager finally bites the bullet. If Glenn Whelan's comments yesterday are anything to go by then there is more than just a meaningless friendly at stake; "It's obviously difficult because we're going through a bit of a sticky patch and people's heads are on the line". If by people he means the manager, then it may be interesting to see the fall out if Ireland suffer another dismal home defeat.
