Nathan Collins has echoed interim manager John O'Shea’s call for a return to winning ways as Ireland get set to take on Belgium on Saturday.
A friendly encounter with nothing to play for, and yet there is a significance to the contest, as this emerging Ireland side are looking to take one giant step forward after losing momentum over the past 12 months.
It all began with an exhilarating performance at home to the World Cup finalists, France, in March 2023, and a lot of positives came from the narrow defeat with Didier Deschamps’ elite side clinging on at the end to claim a 1-0 victory.
But things did not progress for Stephen Kenny’s side, and from there it was bad result followed by bad result until Euro 2024 qualification was ruled out, which ultimately cost the manager his job.
Stand-in manager O’Shea has been tasked to set the team off on the right path before a successor is named in April and the talk from the camp all week has been focused on winning games.
No talk of possession football, playing our from the back or working the ball through the lines, but rather keeping clean sheets, learning how to win games, while creating a winning mentality.
And the players are in no doubt about what is expected of them this week, albeit taking on a very good Belgium side who will be in full preparation for the summer’s tournament in Germany.
"To win," said Collins, when asked what is the most important thing to take from this week. "It’s football at the end of the day. Every game is about winning, no matter what it is. As much as it’s experience for the lads and good for them to be in the group, at the end of the day we need to win games.
"I want to play for Ireland, I want to do everything I can for Ireland. I want to captain Ireland, I want to do everything. But we want to win, that’s the main thing.
"One game at a time, a friendly or not, you want to win, and it’s a good chance for us on Saturday to go get a win."
Collins became an established Ireland player throughout the Kenny era and while it has been a frustrating few years, he never felt that playing for his country was a chore.
"I wouldn’t say it’s been hard to represent Ireland," said the Brentford centre-half. "It’s what I wanted to do as a kid so I’ll always enjoy that and take that in. It’s frustrating losing, it’s frustrating not winning games but at the end of the day it’s obviously an honour to play for Ireland.
"The be-all and end-all is to play for Ireland but, as I said, we want to win games."
Collins believes that he plays his best football when performing consistently, which augurs well for the upcoming doubleheader against Belgium and Switzerland, as the 22-year-old quickly settled in to his new team this season and has played 24 out of 29 Premier League games for the west London club.
The defender remains pragmatic when speaking about some difficult moments in his career, for example, getting subbed at half-time in the Greece defeat in Dublin, saying he tries to learn from mistakes.
And while he hopes they never happen again, he is realistic enough to know that they probably will at certain stages throughout his career.
"That’s football really. If you talk to any player in the world, it’s happened to them," said Collins, when asked about Kenny subbing him at the break.
"Stephen was nothing but great for me. I played nearly 16 games in a row, he gave me my debut and everything really. I can’t speak highly enough of him. He’s given me so much but that’s football.
"It’s how you bounce back from it and learn. I’d prefer if it never happened again but there’s every chance it could.
"At the end [of the season] I’ll look back to see I’ve played as many games, being consistent, playing every game and trying to stay fit week in, week out. That’s when I’m at my best and what I’m hoping for now at the moment.
"Hopefully I can look back at the end as a positive season."
A relegation battle awaits Collins when he does return to Premier League action after the international window as Brentford look to maintain their status for another season.
But he is not alone on that front with several squad members in a similar boat at different clubs all vying against each other, and yet it can offer a source of release during the international window when they can put rivalries aside in Ireland’s cause.
"There’s a bit of banter flying about," said Collins.
"I was giving Andrew (Omobamidele) some stick about his points deduction [at Nottingham Forest], but he’s taking it well and giving me stick.
"That’s natural and normal. Myself and Seamie (Coleman) have been in the relegation fight for three years in a row. We joke about that.
"Football is so hard and it can change in a few games. We’re here together as a team, we’re Ireland but when go back to our clubs we can be enemies again."
