FOOTBALL : Giovanni Trapattoni will send the Republic of Ireland into a do-or-die battle with France in Paris confident their World Cup dream is still alive.
Giovanni Trapattoni will send the Republic of Ireland into a do-or-die battle with France in Paris confident their World Cup dream is still alive.
The Irish will run out at the Stade de France on Wednesday evening trailing to Nicolas Anelka’s lone strike at Croke Park as the French drew first blood in the play-off tussle between the two sides.
Speaking from the Republic’s training headquarters in Malahide, he said: “Football makes us suffer, but there is another great opportunity in Paris because France have conceded many goals away and also at home.”
He added: “We must think about this situation, this balance, our performance, our mentality and also what they have allowed opponents in the past.
“They concede goals and like us, they ended in second place in their group – and we think our group was stronger.
“We have to think about the positives situation and not the result because in the end, football can come down to a deflection, the crossbar, the referee – there are many situations which can change the result.
“I don’t wish to speak about luck, but one year, we won a championship with Juventus when an opponent hit the ball against my striker and we scored a goal.
“If you look at our performance on Saturday night, we played a good game. I have heard also opinion from Italy and other countries, and they said Ireland played a good game against this France team.”
