WHILE THE KNIVES were out in some quarters following Ireland’s disastrous performance last night, one man was surprisingly calm amid all the hoopla.
Perhaps Trap’s men were fortunate that Roy Keane was primarily assessing the England-San Marino last night, and was thus, spared having to endure watching the full 90 minutes of the Irish team’s drubbing.
Consequently, Keane was relatively laidback in his analysis of the outcome, in stark contrast to his now infamous reaction to Ireland’s similarly comprehensive loss to Spain during Euro 2012.
“6-1 is obviously a bit of a hammering,” he told ITV. “In defence of the team, they were missing a lot of senior players. No doubt they’re trying younger players, and when you’re going up against a top team like Germany, it’s a big test, so they failed it tonight.
“But what’s important – because no doubt Germany will top the group – is how they respond and obviously, to try to finish second.
“They play the Faroe Islands on Tuesday and they need to respond. But it is, no doubt, a setback. No one likes being beaten 6-1 at home.”
And after his surprising calmness was commented upon by his ITV colleagues, he was then asked if the upcoming game with the Faroes could still be regarded as a nailed-on three points.
“You’d hope so. Again, you have setbacks in your career as a player, and it’s a big setback for the manager even, with all his experience.
“But the big challenge is how they respond, and I’m sure the Irish players will roll their sleeves up.”
