Ireland get a chance to immediately banish the ghosts of the humiliating defeat by Mexico at the MetLife Stadium when they take on Uruguay at the Aviva Stadium tonight, kick-off 6:00pm.
Martin O’Neill’s side were played off the pitch in New Jersey in the early hours of Friday morning, and now, less than three days later, they have made the trip back across the Atlantic to begin, in earnest, their preparations for next week’s World Cup qualifier against Austria.
Of course, there will be a completely different look to this Ireland side compared to the starting XI that played in America, while there will surely be a return to a more familiar formation following the three centre-halves experiment that led to all sorts of problems against Mexico.
O’Neill Must Deal With American Horror Show
The manager has always claimed that he was very happy taking the friendly game in America, and remarkably still managed to find some positives from the game.
But the performance was weak, the formation experimental, and the tactics baffling, as O’Neill’s side capitulated to an albeit strong, organised and attacking Mexico side.
Granted the match certainly helped several players to shake off the cobwebs and get some competitive football under their belts, but the pure logistics of the fixture meant that preparations for the Uruguay game were completely compromised.
O’Neill wanted the Uruguay match to be the real preparation for Austria and was planning to use his preferred starting XI for the game as a mirror image of what he intends to do next Sunday.
And while the majority of that starting side were left behind while the second string went to America, the squad have had no time to prepare together and will be expected to lift the levels to international standards against a solid, experienced unit tonight.
So should we expect another sluggish Irish performance with little or no emphasise on securing a victory as the manager uses the meaningless friendly to work on fitness and little else?
O’Neill will, of course, just point to the important fixture seven days later and should he secure a result in the final World Cup qualifier of the season, the end-of-term shenanigans Stateside will be instantly forgotten.
Premier League Players Return to Bolster Ireland
The decision to leave the majority of the perceived starting XI at home for the America match should prove one of the better ones ahead of the World Cup qualifier.
Thankfully, the bulk of the players preparing for Austria clash will not have been tainted by that Mexico run-around, and will use the Uruguay game to get their focus back after a couple of weeks off and look forward to the next seven days in camp.
Of course, not all players have that luxury and while Shane Duffy got 90 minutes under his belt, having missed the end of the club season through injury, his match sharpness and positional awareness looked way off in New Jersey, which might lead to the manager reconsidering his central defensive pairings once again.
Richard Keogh did not fare much better against the pace and movement of the Mexicans, but O’Neill might still have to look to the duo to hold the fort for the World Cup qualifier.
No doubt, the three-man defence will have been parked for the foreseeable future and a four-man unit should be in place for this evening’s game, as well as the Austria match in a week, and Cyrus Christie, at least, was one player who showed some form in New Jersey.
The Derby County man will be trusted to fill captain Seamus Coleman’s boots for these games, however, Christie may not get the freedom to attack at will against Uruguay as O’Neill will surely expect a much tighter defensive performance.
Otherwise, there should be a real first-team look to tonight’s side, with O’Neill having to contemplate his usual midfield dilemmas and whether Robbie Brady should be used in attack or returned to that left back role.
Keeping Tabs on the Number One Jersey
These end of season games emphasise how hard it is for players to break into Martin O’Neill’s international side.
Several fringe members would have been looking to make their mark in the USA with Callum O’Dowda, Daryl Horgan, Conor Hourihane, John Egan and others hoping to impress the manager ahead of the World Cup clash.
But sometimes matches like the Mexico one can do a player’s chances more harm than good and that certainly was the case in New Jersey as no player really stood out in what turned out to be a one-sided affair for large chunks of the game.
And Darren Randolph (above) is now perhaps looking over his shoulder with the in-form Keiren Westwood joining the squad following his extended season at Sheffield Wednesday.
Randolph lost his place in the West Ham side for the final stretch of the Premier League campaign and the Mexico match was aimed at ensuring he was back to peak sharpness for the qualifier.
But now the manager has a big call to make and may hand Westwood a starting berth against Uruguay this evening.
The Owls stopper has proved his commitment to the cause over the past 12 months and maybe now he will get a chance to dislodge Randolph and take the jersey for Austria.
The Opposition
The South Americans arrive in Dublin without world-class striker and Barcelona hit-man Luis Suarez.
The official line is that the former Liverpool man is struggling with a thigh injury, while Atletico Madrid defender Diego Godin and Hull City’s Abel Hernandez are also ruled out through injury.
However, the squad remains full of top players, most notably centre forward Edinson Cavani, who has just come off another excellent personal season at his club PSG, where he was the league’s top scorer, notching a staggering 35 league goals.
Cavani is also the current leading scorer for his country in their World Cup qualifying campaign, scoring nine goals in 11 games.
And Uruguay need the veteran striker to keep his form going as they attempt to qualify for Russia. They currently sit in third place in the Conmebol table but have had some mixed fortunes, most recently losing to Peru and Brazil within five days in March.
Unlike Martin O’Neill’s Ireland, Uruguay have no more competitive action until the end of August, when they face Argentina, and they also face Italy in Nice on Wednesday.
Former Liverpool defender Sebastián Coates, now at Sporting Lisbon, travels to Dublin alongside veteran international Maxi Pereira, former Juve man Martín Cáceres, Christian Stuani of Middlesbrough and Serie A duo Matías Vecino (Fiorentina) and Diego Laxalt (Genoa), so the 16th ranked team in the world will still provide a formidable opposition should a competitive game of football break out.
Possible Ireland XI: Keiren Westwood; Cyrus Christie, John O’Shea, Shane Duffy, Stephen Ward; Robbie Brady; Glenn Whelan, Harry Arter, Jeff Hendrick, Aiden McGeady; Jon Walters.
