Euro 2016 – Republic of Ireland coach spotlight – Martin O’Neill

Euro 2016 – Republic of Ireland coach spotlight – Martin O’Neill

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A decorated player and coach for 45 years, Martin O’Neill took over the Irish side in November 2013 and has taken them to their second straight continental competition.

O’Neill possesses a wealth of experience across English and Scottish football and will try and put that knowledge to good use as he aims to steer the team through Group E.

READ MORE: Euro 2016 – Republic of Ireland star player – Robbie Keane

Tactical setup

The 64-year-old showed over his time in English football a tendency to play a fairly pragmatic style with two banks of four, setting up two out-and-out strikers. Since moving on from Aston Villa he has proven an ability to vary his lineup to suit his personnel. In recent games, Ireland have been playing in either a 4-3-3 or a 4-5-1, depending on the names that started the game. The theory is still the same, however, adds two holding-midfielders, one playmaker, a central striker and two wingers.

His main philosophy is to play smart and disciplined football, which suits the Irish squad quite well. The focus of his tactics are to stifle the opposition and hit them on the counter, trying to catch teams out on the break in the traditional underdog style we have seen catch hold over England as of late. What brought about his undoing in the Premier League was his inability to and implement a ‘Plan B’ when things needed a change.

Previous Employment

Having begun his managerial career in 1987 with Grantham Town, O’Neill has worked his way up and down the English ladder with a brief stint in Scotland as well. He moved to Leicester in 1995 and won two League Cups in that time, also guiding them into the Premier League which lead to two attempts in the old UEFA Cup. His most successful period came at Celtic from 2000 to 2005, where he helped them secure three league titles, three Scottish Cups and a Scottish League Cup, as well as the UEFA Cup final in 2003.

From there he went to Aston Villa and had a highly successful run from 2007 to 2009 where they qualified for Europe. O’Neill left the Villans in 2010 over a dispute about transfers before joining Sunderland, where he spent almost two full seasons was sacked with the club hovering above the relegation zone.

Conclusion

Ireland have a talented manager at the helm of the team and O’Neill can put his wealth of experience to full use to try and get them through a tough group.

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