When it comes to self-assessment, Alan Browne undoubtedly holds high standards for himself even if he does not feel the word "perfectionist" is a fitting title.
The Republic of Ireland midfielder has won 11 caps and is likely to pick up at least a couple more as the Boys In Green get their 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign underway against Serbia and Luxembourg this week, before a friendly against the hosts of the tournament proper, Qatar.
While he has a goal to his name for Ireland and made a positive impact after being subbed on in the Euro 2020 play-off in Slovakia last October - before the misfortune of missing a penalty in the shootout - the Cork native feels a sense of disappointment when he reflects on his Irish career so far.
"It's been kind of stop-start for me under the new manager, especially with Covid where I was involved with a close contact case and then obviously got it myself, so that doesn't really help," he says.
"But in the games I have featured, I don't think I've done well enough, I don't think anywhere [near] enough to warrant a start every time I come away.
"I think I need to do more and that's at club level as well - that's where it starts.
"I'm looking to make sure I put down a marker this time round. I was obviously suspended for the last (club) game, so I'm feeling full of energy and ready to go and I'll be looking to put things right from my own point of view."
The World Cup campaign does provide a clean slate for the 25-year-old and one which could help banish the disappointment of that night in Slovakia, although he "doesn't want to dwell on that for too long".
"It seems like a long time ago now but in international football that's the way it is because it's so spread out," he says.
"You get to go back to your club and kind of put it behind you and that's what we've done - certainly I have."
"He's done a fantastic job and ultimately us as players we've let him down"
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) March 21, 2021
Alan Browne reacts to the departure of his Preston club manager Alex Neil but says his focus remains on Ireland's upcoming World Cup qualifiers: https://t.co/uO3tpDqkUu #rtesoccer #pnefc pic.twitter.com/5tzoD8zE1f
Indeed, before the red card he incurred for Preston last Wednesday, which means a three-game lay-off, the midfielder had clocked up 2,758 minutes for the Championship side in this condensed, helter-skelter season - a stat that none of his club colleagues will be able to match even by the time he returns from suspension in the middle of next month.
But Browne, who admits he is "gutted" at club manager Alex Neil's departure, which he found out about shortly before Sunday's press conference, is keeping his focus squarely on Ireland squad duty where he will be joined by Preston loanee Jayson Molumby, who made his senior Irish debut last year.
Amid a run of poor results for Preston which ultimately led to Neil's departure, Browne feels that has been detrimental to Molumby's chances of getting more game-time.
"I was really impressed with him," says Browne of the five-time Ireland cap's impact at Deepdale since joining from Brighton in January.
"When I first saw him play, I think I played against him sometime last year with Millwall and then got more of a taste of him within the Irish set-up but since he's come to Preston, he's been top class.
"His work-rate, his ability on the ball, he's fantastic and I think when you come on loan, it's a case of you either play every game or you're the one taken out if things are going against you and unfortunately for him, things have been going against us big time and we haven't been doing well enough and it's probably affected him and he's probably been unfairly taken out of the team at times because, as I said, he's been brilliant since he's come in."
Browne acknowledges that expectations from outside observes are low in regard to Ireland's chances of qualifying due to recent results and the presence of reigning European and Nations League champions Portugal as well as a potentially dangerous Serbia.
But he reasons that those circumstances could bring out the best in the squad: "Us as a team and as a nation, we're always ones to thrive off this and be the underdog and come out on top and that's what we will be looking to do.
"We want to live up to the history of teams gone before us, getting through to the big games and the big stages"
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) March 21, 2021
Ireland's Alan Browne looks ahead to the start of Ireland's 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign #rtesoccer #COYBIG pic.twitter.com/PsazXETLcs
"We've got to be as optimistic as possible and we'll be going into every game looking to win it, make no doubt about that. We want to live up to the history of teams gone before us in getting through to the big games and the big stages."
And for the coming week, he feels a minimum of four points from a possible six against Serbia and Luxembourg would be acceptable.
"That's the minimum we're willing to accept. Anything more than that would be obviously fantastic but anything less than that, it's not the end of the world. But you want to get off to a quick start and accumulate as many point as you can early doors."
Follow Serbia v Republic of Ireland via our live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app, watch live on RTÉ2 and the RTÉ Player or listen to commentary on RTÉ 2fm's Game On.
