John O'Shea faced a grilling at FAI headquarters this morning regarding who was currently in charge of the Ireland team, ahead of Tuesday’s UEFA Nations League clash with Greece.
Ireland come into the game off the back of a comprehensive defeat to England on Saturday evening, and while Heimir Hallgrimsson has said that he was taking a back seat for these opening games, O’Shea emphasised that it was the Icelandic coach who was firmly in charge of affairs.
When asked about Hallgrimsson’s absence from the pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow's game, O'Shea said that the plan for him to attend was already in place.
The head coach is expected to talk to the media on the day before the game, however, on this occasion, the assistant coach, O’Shea, attended the media briefing at the Sport Ireland Campus in his place, accompanied by goalkeeper Caoimhín Kelleher.
"It's very simple, this plan was in place beforehand and it's obviously to give the boss as much time in terms of preparation, the quick turnaround in the games, that was always the case so there is no change in anything," said O’Shea.
"No fear at all," replied the former interim manager, when asked would it lead to confusion among the players as who is in charge.
"The boss is the boss and there are clear lines on that. As I mentioned, this is the plan that was in place beforehand, and we felt there was no reason to change it."
When pushed for further insight into the choice of candidate for media duties, considering UEFA regulations state the manager/head coach must speak to the media on eve of game, barring suspension, O’Shea was adamant that he was neither the boss nor did he consider his position as a leading role.
"It’s not a leading role, I’m the assistant," said O’Shea. "The leader is the boss and that is clear.
"The full focus on the plan beforehand, this was always in place in our itinerary so that was always the case…it’s a quick turnaround when you are trying to get things sorted and this was always the case, that was the plan beforehand and it is full focus on Greece.
"It’s clear, I’m the assistant," again, O’Shea having to respond to another question about confusion in the camp.
"I don’t know why there has to be this constant, the boss is the boss, it’s very simple. The players know that, you can ask Caoimhín about that. The meetings that were coming across, the plans in place.
"So I don’t know why you have to keep going on about that. For me personally, it’s clear from the staff’s point of view and the players’ point of view."
Looking back on the England game, O’Shea echoed the manager’s post match view that huge improvement is needed following the two-goal loss at Lansdowne.
But O’Shea offered an air of confidence ahead of the Greece game
"Most importantly you reflect straight away," said O’Shea, when asked about reviewing the game.
"The manager wants to get across as clearly as he can and as quickly as he can, what he is looking for. Good references and the references that we have to improve on, simple as that.
"You play against a team that has just been in the Euros final and you know you're going to be under plenty of pressure in a game like that. The fact that it was England too brings that extra bit of scrutiny too.
"Clearly [there is] room for improvement, we know that, we know England were the best team on the day but thankfully we have another chance to put in a performance against Greece quite quickly.
"That's the beauty of having a game so quickly," added O’Shea, when asked about improving confidence levels.
"That's the benefit when you have that two-game window, you have that short turnaround and even when you think ahead to October and November it's a Thursday-Sunday scenario so it's even quicker.
"It's very clear, we know we have things to improve on and we get the chance to work on it today and we will have more time in the morning to touch on things before final preparation and travelling into the game."
O’Shea also spoke about his thoughts on tomorrow’s opponents, and while Greece enjoyed a 3-0 opening win against Finland, O’Shea believes, having watched the game, that the most important factor will be how Ireland implement their own gameplan.
"You reflect on Greece against Finland. You get the footage of that as quickly as you can and you put a plan in place," said O’Shea, regarding preparing for the Greece game.
"The scoreline was a little bit unfair maybe to Finland. When you watch the full game. A mistake from the Finnish goalkeeper gave Greece a big advantage in the game and they were able to take confidence from that.
"It’s about us as well and how we go about things and make sure we have that compactness in the team, that aggressiveness in the team and that confidence to go and implement what the plan is."
Watch Republic of Ireland v Greece in the UEFA Nations League on Tuesday from 7.20pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on 2fm's Game On
