Irish football has faced a crisis off the pitch the past two years and on the pitch it has been a real struggle too. A poor end to the Martin O’Neill reign which should have ended after the 5-1 play off loss to Denmark, was followed by the damp squib of a return by Mick […] More
The World Cup qualifiers are coming in 6 weeks. So, it’s time to assess the majority of Ireland’s players (26) that are most likely to feature under Kenny at the start of this campaign. Much has been made of Kenny’s poor start, the coronavirus absences and player injuries. Hopefully this time Kenny has a full-strength […] More
After failing to qualify for the European Championships and a dismal run of form, the Republic of Ireland are in dire need of a victory in the near future. Stephen Kenny and his men are winless in their last nine matches but have a decent run of fixtures, including the start of their World Cup qualifying […] More
With a population of just 10 million Portugal have gone from the second tier of World Football into the 1st tier. Since 2000 (much of which Cristiano Ronaldo has been playing) Portugal have regularly reached the latter stages of the Euros and World Cups; they finally won a major tournament for the first time in […] More
The Azerbaijan footballing federation was founded in 1992, after the country gained independence in 1991 after the fall of the old Soviet Union. There have been few highlights since in the footballing world. Their highest finish in a qualifying group was fourth, then managed under the German Bertie Vogts. Their highest ever position in the […] More
We live in an age of social networks and TV debates where everyone has an opinion, including perhaps more than a few people who shouldn’t. Then there’s Roy Keane, someone who tells it like it is, someone we can listen to all day, filling TV punditry appearances with pearls of wisdom and good humour, plus […] More
Before the final games of the Nations League were completed, Ireland were fighting it out with Bulgaria to avoid relegation into group C. One of the main talking points for Ireland fans on the ybig forum before the game was what position we will be seeded in for the World Cup. If we were to […] More
When the Group A draw for the World Cup 2022 was completed, no one in Ireland was giving Luxembourg much of a thought as all eyes were on the top two seeded teams in the group, Portugal and Serbia, while 4th seeds Luxembourg would be dismissed as minnows by many Ireland fans. And for for […] More
Ireland were handed a fairly kind draw in World Cup qualifying Group A. While Portugal, as top seeds, will be heavy favourites to win the group, Serbia as second seeds will be seen by Ireland manager Stephen Kenny as a team we can finish above into 2nd place. Serbia were in Ireland’s last WC qualifying […] More
Sky Sports would have you believe football was invented in 1990, and some of our younger readers might just believe them too. But there was a mysterious time of brilliant taches, amazing barnets and some great Ireland players, all played out on some bobbly, horrible pitches you’d expect to see in the United Churches League. […] More
Ireland has managed to avoid relegation from Nations League B with a stalemate against Bulgaria, but the lack of goals has become more and more of an issue for The Boys in Green. While there is an underlying story of all the withdrawals that Stephen Kenny has been forced to deal with, the stats don’t […] More
The retirement of David McGoldrick came as a shock to Ireland fans when he confirmed his withdrawal from international football last week. The 32-year old Sheffield United striker has decided that he will concentrate on his club football and his family (he has four children) while he is no longer away with international football. McGoldrick […] More
