"He's electric," pondered Heimir Hallgrimsson, during one of the squad training sessions in the build-up to the opening World Cup qualifier against Hungary.
Neither the player nor the position were revealed as to which one of the 23 particularly caught the eye throughout the squad session, but it would appear that it was enough to change the manager’s mind.
The national team boss said at the start of the week that he had a starting eleven in mind coming into the camp, while adding that he was open to changing his mind based on wheat he saw at training. And that appears to be the case.
It all plays into the conversation, that there really is tough competition for places to start tonight’s Aviva Stadium encounter, with very little between playing and starting on the sidelines.
A full squad with no injury concerns, following Liam Scales getting the all clear, the manager has a headache of a most welcoming nature to contend with.
"I’m not going to reveal my team selection, but yes, we have changed our mind during this week," said Hallgrimsson, speaking at the pre-match press conference, when asked had he changed his mind regarding team selection, based on what you’ve seen on the training ground.
"It is how some people come to training and 'wow, he’s electric'. So we should use that moment, or ‘he’s not showing up 100%’ and that would be these moments that you would change your mind.
"And from looking at it, we would do a lot of tactical things and maybe if we are in doubt, some players are better than others and that is what we are showing in training."
One name that was mentioned during the press conference was that of Bosun Lawal, who has yet to make his international debut, however, it has become apparent that the manager is a big fan of the Stoke City defender, who also plays in midfield.
The manager, and coach Paddy McCarthy, speaking earlier this week, have both hinted that Ireland will play with two number sixes (defensive midfielders) against Hungary, which could allow Hallgrimsson to throw Lawal in at the deep end.
Similarly, Nathan Collins has jumped into that role when out of possession, and could do the same tomorrow night, however, Hallgrimsson and captain, sitting side by side at the top table for the press conference, found the prospect amusing for one reason or another.
"I think we’ve been improving the two sixes," said Hallgrimsson. "We’ve sometimes been playing with two sixes, we’ve been repeating the same messages, and for us, it’s improving all the time.
"But it’s always good to have players like Nathan who can play more than one position and we have Bosun, a similar player. I’m not going to say I’ve stopped thinking about it (Collins in midfield). It’s always there. But tomorrow I don’t think he’ll play in there."
Hallgrimsson has gradually improved the squad and admitted ahead of the game that, in his mind, the players look taller in training, which has brought an air of confidence about the camp.
And the manager is always looking for ways of getting an extra edge, building the small margins for maximum effect.
Hallgrimsson has a set of principles which make up a large amount of his approach to the game to attempt to win games, and the Icelander believes that if the players can implement most of them, it will increase their chances of success.
"Definitely, if you are an underdog like us in this group, we are ranked No 3, we need to be better than others in some areas," said Hallgrimsson.
"It's always better to be best in three, four, five, six areas out of ten rather than to be semi-good in ten out of ten.
"So we are focusing on certain areas we want to be good at, and that's these principles in defence and attack. We want to improve them because we would like to be better than others in some areas and that is our focus and what gives us belief.
"And that is why the confidence is growing, and the energy is growing, because we feel like we are improving in those areas and that will give us an edge in games, when we're playing Hungary and even if we go to the World Cup and we're playing world class teams. That is what's needed to succeed at this level."
The manager has been open and honest throughout his tenure, and it would appear that his clear and concise messaging has also gone down well with his players who have certainly embraced his methods and motives in the quest to qualify for the World Cup.
And captain Collins was asked about the relationship between manager and players, and what he had learned about Hallgrimsson.
"I think a massive thing is his experience from what he's done and where he's been previously with other teams," said Collins.
"I've played with players that have had him as manager before and talking to them, they say it's a simple man to get behind because his idea is, that he makes everything as easy as possible for us players to learn about and to get behind and I think that's something that's helped the group get to where we are now.
"That his ways have made it very easy for us to be on the pitch and gel everything together so I think the biggest thing for us is that he's made life for us on the pitch a lot easier from where we were at the start when he first came in.
"To get behind his tactics and his ways on and off the pitch has been very easy."
"And that’s why he is captain," joked Hallgrimsson, happy to play down the praise.
Watch Republic of Ireland v Hungary in World Cup qualifying tonight from 7pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Listen to live radio commentary on RTÉ Radio 1.
