Portugal were meticulously rehearsing their strategies for the forthcoming Euro 2024 competition. The British team’s attendance in Aveiro felt akin to spectating a wedding practice but not receiving an invite to the nuptials, merely observing it from a live stream. It struck a chord of familiarity, from this Friday all of us will be tuning in without any personal stakes.
To avoid indulging in nostalgic or overdone metaphors, we are akin to a boxing partner prepping for a pivotal match, for which our involvement will only extend to watching from the comforts of home. Not to forget, it’s nearly been eight years since our last encounter in a significant tournament, during the time Rhasidat Adeleke was a mere 13-year-old.
As Portugal gears up for the European Championships after this match, sadly, our boys’ next destination would be a vacation, as Darragh Maloney candidly puts it.
There were novelties, the deck reshuffled, fresh blood introduced including James McClean, who had just made his RTÉ debut. His retirement came too early as he admitted, the realisation striking upon viewing Portugal’s line-up, where Ronaldo and Pepe, two of the starters, had an accumulated age of 80. James, by comparison, felt he should still be in his early years of the game.
The important question was if the temporary coach John O’Shea should be made permanent. James 100% supported the idea, referring to the drawn-out process of finding a manger as ludicrous. Although he didn’t overpraise John by comparing him to Pep Guardiola, he did suggest John had a desirable quality over the numerous other contenders due to his genuine interest in the job.
On the topic of novel beginnings, Jake O’Brien had his first run for Ireland, the interview conducted by fellow Cork native, Tony O’Donoghue, depicted Jake as a reliable individual. A minor confusion may arise from the television commenters referring to the Lyon defensive kingpin as “Jacob Ryan”.
In an interesting turn of events, RTÉ managed to coax Ronnie Whelan away from his relaxing Mediterranean holiday to join Des Curran in the sports commentary box. Despite often expressing anger over World Cup finals, let alone end-of-season friendly matches in Aveiro, Ronnie tried his best to infuse some excitement into the commentary. He enthusiastically encouraged the team to figure out how to put their opponents “under pressure”. It seemed to work until the 15th minute when João Félix scored his first goal, despite Whelan’s prior comment about Félix being ineffective on the pitch. While Whelan wasn’t entirely at fault for the goal, Ireland’s defence against Portugal was disappointingly lacking.
Stephen Kelly, commenting on the match, said “This is a test of resilience,” coinciding with James’ visible dejection and possible regret for trading a sunny beach vacation for sports analysis. Entrusted with examining Ireland’s offensive strategy, Stephen brought the segment to a swift close. The second half saw predominantly one player’s influence, Ronaldo. “What a hit, what a magnificent finish, the 39-year-old just scored a spectacular goal,” lauded Ronnie as Ronaldo maneuvered expertly around Liam Scales, slotting the ball into Ireland’s net, and then later increased Portugal’s lead to 3-0. However, Whelan still made a point to remind everyone of Lionel Messi’s supremacy.
After the dismal performance, James voiced his disappointment with the exhausted looking and less than confident Ireland. Portugal is now set to head to Germany while Ireland braces itself for international games starting from September at home against Euro 2024 favourites, England, held in Dublin. It remains uncertain whether Ireland will have a permanent manager by then. It’s sincerely hoped that it won’t be so long that Rhasidat Adeleke has retired before the final decision is made from the Abbotstown boardroom.
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