Wes Hoolahan’s phone was hopping with messages from well-wishers after his stunning strike against Sweden.
However, the euphoria of that moment did not last long as the 3-0 defeat to Belgium, as well as Ireland’s performance on the day, brought him back down to earth with a bump.
The 34-year-old said the squad had little time to dwell on that disappointment with Wednesday’s crucial game against Italy coming so soon afterwards.
Ireland need a win, not to mention a better performance, to secure third place in the group and claim a place in the knockout stages of the European Championships for the first time.
For all the nice messages and compliments following his goal against Sweden, Hoolahan hopes it is not Ireland’s only highlight in this tournament.
"Obviously it was a disappointing result the other day but we’re all looking forward to the Italian game”
He said: “The [team hotel] was buzzing. I got hundreds of texts with people congratulating me and saying well done and it was a great night. The experience has been fantastic.
"Obviously it was a disappointing result the other day but we’re all looking forward to the Italian game.”
“It brought us back into reality,” he said in reference to the game against Belgium in Bordeaux on Saturday. “It’s important that over the next couple of days that we get our heads on the game.
“The most important thing is that we get the three points which gives us a great chance of getting out of the group.”
Ireland struggled to keep the ball against Belgium and did not have a single shot on target, the first time that has happened at a major tournament since they played Norway at USA 94.
Assistant manager Roy Keane has called for the players to show courage and “balls” in their approach on Wednesday night.
He warned that similar punishment awaits Ireland if they do not protect the ball against Italy, even if Antonio Conte plans to make wholesale changes.
Thus the onus is on Hoolahan to get on the ball and create chances, but he doesn’t feel the pressure of being creator-in-chief.
“I don’t mind that,” he said. “It’s my job in the team to create chances for the lads and help my teammates out and hopefully I can do that.
“Against Sweden we had a lot of chances and we played very well and had shots on goal. Against Belgium, we didn’t do that and they were the better team on the day. That’s just how it goes.
“They are a high quality team so we found it difficult in that game. We need to play better against the Italians, keep the ball better and create more chances.
“It all depends on what we do. It’s not what they do. It’s important that we’re on the front foot, keep the ball better and create chances.”
In the run-up to this tournament, there was a lot of talk about his inability to play several games in a short space of time, but Hoolahan dismissed that notion here saying he feels fit to play his third game in ten days.
He also rejected suggestions that he may contemplate retiring from international football to prolong his club career.
“I haven’t thought about that,” he said when asked about retiring. “I’m just concentrating on the Wednesday game and see what happens after that.
“The body feels good and I’m looking forward to playing against the Italians on Wednesday. Today was kind of a warm-down and we’ll travel up there tomorrow.”
