Latest news with #Hallgrímsson
The 42
3 hours ago
- Sport
- The 42
'He's a player of interest... a character that could help us' - Ireland boss open to James McClean return
HEIMIR HALLGRÍMSSON SAYS James McClean could play a part in the Republic of Ireland squad for the World Cup qualifying campaign. The international boss confirmed discussions have taken place with the 36-year-old while in Derry recently, and that the 36-year-old would be considered for selection after the upcoming friendlies with Senegal and Luxembourg. Hallgrímsson's policy for selecting his current squad was to allow as many of his Championship players as much time off as possible. One of those who the Ireland manager couldn't do without was Robbie Brady, citing a dearth of left backs available to him. Advertisement Shamrock Rovers defender Josh Honohan earned a call-up this week and McClean, who departed the scene with 103 caps, could make a dramatic return by the time qualifiers for USA/Canada/Mexico comes around in September. McClean will play in England's second tier next season after securing another promotion with Wrexham. He initially announced his Ireland retirement in 2023 after dropping down to League Two with the Welsh club. 'That was my understanding when I came. He was out. Obviously, we've spoken about him a little bit, especially when I went to Derry,' Hallgrímsson said. 'He is a player of interest, really. Again, a character that could help us at some point. I think this camp, we were more looking at younger players, but obviously we look at him like everyone else. 'If he is better than the ones we have already, I would have no problem with selecting him. And I've said before, age is not an issue for me if a player is 16 and better than the ones before or 35. It really doesn't matter if they are better than the ones we have. 'I don't know the story behind his decision and what happened and all of that. I read up on his history and all the things around him. Interesting, shows his strength in character as well, reading up on him. 'Yeah, probably the change was to help this team to develop and progress. And here you have it. So maybe that's a good decision for the club to take him and for him to go there. And he is probably now a legend at that club (Wrexham) as well. Correct? 'In regards to us, I don't know him personally. I haven't spoken to him, but just caught up on him, seen him play. Like I said, what is he, 36? So he's not getting any younger. But if he's better than the ones we have, I would have no problems with selecting him. Again, it would have been good to have camps to call him in and work with him for a week.'
Irish Daily Mirror
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Ireland boss fires World Cup selection warning to players
Heimir Hallgrímsson has issued a warning to his Ireland players, including Evan Ferguson, that they face the axe if they struggle for minutes at club level next season. Ferguson managed just over 500 minutes in all competitions between Brighton and a loan spell at West Ham in a season disrupted by ankle injuries. Yet at international level he scored twice for the Boys in Green - the winner at home to Finland and an equaliser in the Nations League play-off second-leg against Bulgaria. Hallgrímsson insisted that the 20-year-old didn't let his club woes affect him whenever he came in for an Ireland camp. 'We can see in our sessions his qualities, especially in finishing, second to none. When given a chance, he's been good even though he's not playing on a regular basis,' he said. However, club form will help dictate Hallgrímsson's decisions going into the World Cup qualifiers later this year. 'We all know that once he starts playing on a regular basis, he will deliver even more for us,' he said of Ferguson. 'For strikers, it's important to have confidence to be playing on a regular basis, to be scoring on a regular basis. That is why Troy (Parrott) was doing really well in the March window. 'He did really good for us because he had the momentum and the record of scoring.' Hallgrímsson added: 'There will come a point when we cannot select players when they're not playing.'
Irish Daily Mirror
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Hallgrimsson's shock message to James McClean ahead of World Cup qualifiers
Heimir Hallgrímsson has opened the door to a sensational James McClean return to the green jersey. The Ireland manager explained that he hadn't considered the Wrexham captain because he was under the impression that McClean had quit international football. However, the Derry native stated last year that he would find a call-up 'a hard one to turn down' - while he added: 'Never say never.' Hallgrímsson is short on left-back options, with Robbie Brady currently the number one pick for that role. Shamrock Rovers defender Josh Honohan has been drafted in for the upcoming friendlies at home to Senegal and away to Luxembourg. McClean will be back in the Championship next season after winning back-to-back promotions with Wrexham - and Hallgrímsson said: 'That was my understanding when I came - he was out. 'Obviously, we've spoken about him a little bit, especially when I went to Derry. 'He is a player of interest, really. Again, a character that could help us at some point. 'I think this camp, we were more looking at younger players, but obviously we look at him like everyone else. 'If he is better than the ones we have already, I would have no problem with selecting him. And I've said before, age is not an issue for me if a player is 16 and better than the ones before or 35. It really doesn't matter if they are better than the ones we have.' Hallgrímsson hasn't watched the Welcome to Wrexham documentary, but he has an idea of what 103-time capped McClean can bring to a dressing room. 'I don't know the story behind his decision (to drop down to League Two) and what happened and all of that. I read up on his history and all the things around him,' said the Ireland manager. 'Interesting, it shows his strength in character as well, reading up on him. 'Yeah, probably the change (of club) was to help this team to develop and progress. And here you have it. So maybe that's a good decision for the club to take him and for him to go there. 'And he is probably now a legend at that club as well. Correct? 'In regards to us, I don't know him personally. I haven't spoken to him, but just caught up on him, seen him play. 'Like I said, what is he, 36? So he's not getting any younger. But if he's better than the ones we have, I would have no problems with selecting him. 'Again, it would have been good to have camps to call him in and work with him for a week.' Another potential left-sided option is PEC Zwolle's Anselmo Garcia MacNulty. The former Ireland Under-21 defender played every single minute in the Eredivisie with his side last season and was watched by Hallgrímsson, but he only made the stand-by list for the June friendlies. 'I've seen a few games. He's a promising player. Now, the good thing for him is he's playing in a team that believes in him,' said the Icelander. 'He's playing every minute in a proper league. A different style than he's used to, so he's adapting to the style they are playing. 'A left-footed centre-back, we don't have many of those. But (he has) probably more chance of playing as a left-back, but he's not doing that at this stage. 'He can play both, so if you look to the future, definitely a guy that we will have our eye on.'
Irish Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Hallgrimsson aiming to avoid unwanted record ahead of World Cup campaign
As if there wasn't enough pressure on Heimir Hallgrímsson and his players ahead of the World Cup qualifiers later this year. Failure to make the 2026 tournament - co-hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico - would represent the longest gap between appearances on either the European or World stage since the country's breakthrough at Euro '88. By 2026, 10 years will have passed since the last successful campaign - and that would equal the distance between Ireland's 2002 World Cup heroics and the disastrous Euro 2012 showing. Progress to the European Championships four years later and progress to the last-16 in France gave rise to optimism that regular qualifications were back on the cards. Then came the play-off collapse against Denmark for the 2018 World Cup, and a poor showing in the Euro 2020 qualifiers and play-off penalty shootout heartache against Slovakia. Stephen Kenny's men were out of contention early in the 2022 World Cup campaign, while Euro 2024 was practically out of the question after the draw landed Ireland in a group with France and the Netherlands. So here we are, a few months out from a rapid-fire three-month series of World Cup qualifiers against Portugal, Hungary and Armenia. Manager Hallgrímsson has just one player in his current squad - Lille hero Robbie Brady - that featured at Euro 2016. While he remains hopeful that Seamus Coleman will be available come September, it's a real knowledge deficit when it comes to successfully navigating a qualification campaign. Giovanni Trapattoni had four veterans of the 2002 World Cup - Shay Given, Richard Dunne, Damien Duff and Robbie Keane - when he bridged a 10-year gap to progress to Euro 2012. That experience, says Hallgrímsson, can be key. So expect Brady, and hopefully Coleman, to have big roles on and off the pitch by September's big kick-off. 'I can only say from my experience, once you have smelled it, you know how big it is and you would want to go again and again and again,' said the former Iceland manager. 'They know that and we need them to spread that around the young players, just how massive it is and how fun it is. 'These are the moments you remember when you stop playing. To share that experience is so important. 'I have spoken about Robbie, how good he has been since I came in, in the absence of Seamus, him and Doc (Matt Doherty) have needed to step up in the leadership role.' It's not just that experience that is invaluable. Qualification offers an international manager something that they cannot buy at any other time of their tenure. 'It's not only to qualify, it's the two months of being together that will continue to grow the team,' he said. 'That's not spoken of, but it's one of the reasons why it's always the same teams qualifying. They spend that valuable time together that other teams don't get. 'We only have five camps, and have had the shortest FIFA window, three camps I think were only a week. 'Seven days, seven days, seven days, and if you are developing teams three weeks is not much. 'Most of the training sessions are recovery because they play on the Sunday with the clubs. We cannot do anything Monday. Tuesday is limited load. 'That is the valuable time for national teams, to be in camps in finals, it's something we really need at this moment.' There is something else that Hallgrímsson could do with - a strong pool of players getting regular game-time in Europe's top five leagues. Recently, FAI academy chief Will Clarke made the point during a presentation that a country needed 35 players playing an average of 1,400 minutes of league football a season in a top five league to be successful. During 2024/25, 20 Irish players featured for less than 1,000 minutes each on average. However, Hallgrímsson insisted: 'I think we have the material to qualify, sure. I think I have, again, from experience. 'I have qualified with less talent than we have here. So that's my take on this question. 'I know what you're getting at. Obviously, we would like more players to play at a higher level. 'And I think more players will play at a higher level. They're still not peaking in age and all of that. So I'm pretty confident that we will have more players playing more minutes in the top leagues.'
The 42
3 days ago
- Sport
- The 42
'Well, he didn't say f*** off' - Ireland boss on talks with Chelsea-bound Liam Delap
HEIMIR HALLGRÍMSSON HAD spoken about a handful of his Republic of Ireland players for the upcoming friendlies with Senegal and Luxembourg when conversation naturally turned to someone who has yet to have any involvement with the Boys in Green. Step right up Liam Delap. On a day when the Ipswich Town striker agreed a £30 million (€36m) move to Chelsea, informing the likes of Manchester United, Juventus and Newcastle United that their sales pitch was not sufficient, Hallgrímsson confirmed that they, too, had sat with the England Under-21 international to assess the lay of the land. The 22-year-old is still eligible for the upcoming U21 European Championships and will be part of Lee Carsley's squad for the tournament in the coming weeks. 'That is his focus at the moment. What will happen after that we will have to wait and see,' Hallgrímsson said. A senior pathway to the Ireland team, following in the footsteps of his father Rory, was made clear to him. 'Liam has good qualities, everybody knows that. We have sat with him, yeah. Just told him we would love to have him in our camp. But, like I said, the focus in the [England] under-21s.' Given he is a player who has progressed from Under-16 up with England and his club career is on the rise after a breakthrough season in the Premier League, the obvious question for the Ireland boss was whether Delap showed any interest in switching. Advertisement 'Well, he didn't say f*** off,' Hallgrímsson said, a deadpan delivery followed by a laugh. 'We want the best players available, always playing for us. Others might have other opinions. 'It is up to him. These questions you need to ask the player himself, not me. We always want the best players.' Attracting a player like Delap would be a coup, significantly bolstering options ahead of a World Cup qualifying campaign which the Ireland boss remains confident can end with reaching north America next summer. 'I think we have the material to qualify, sure. I think I have, again, from experience, have qualified with less talent than we have here,' the former Iceland boss said. 'So that's my take on this question. I know what you're getting at. Obviously, we would like more players to play at a higher level. And I think more players will play at a higher level. They're still not peaking in age and all of that. So I'm pretty confident that we will have more players playing more minutes in the top leagues.' After Seamus Coleman was forced to pull out through injury, Robbie Brady is the only player in the squad for the upcoming friendlies who was part of Euro 2016. If Ireland fail to reach the World Cup it means the country will have to wait until Euro 2028 – as one of the co-hosts – to play at a major international tournament. That 12-year-wait will be the longest since first making it to the European Championships in 1988. 'I can only say from my experience, once you have smelled it, you know how big it is and you would want to go again and again and again. They know that and we need them to spread that around the young players, just how massive it is and how fun it is,' Hallgrímsson said of reaching a tournament. 'These are the moments you remember when you stop playing. To share that experience is so important. I have spoken about Robbie [Brady], how good he has been since I came in, in the absence of Séamus, him and Doc (Matt Doherty) have needed to step up in the leadership role. Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrímsson speaking yesterday. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO 'It's not only to qualify, it's the two months of being together that will continue to grow the team. That's not spoken of, but it's one of the reasons why it's always the same teams qualifying. They spend that valuable time together that other teams don't get. 'That is the valuable time for national teams, to be in camps in finals, it's something we really need at this moment.' Coleman's availability is also a necessity for Hallgrímsson, who believes some players might have called it quits at international level after dealing with some of the injury issues he's had. 'I think that is just an example of what kind of person he is, even though through this many players would probably have stopped. But he pushes himself always to the limit and he expects the same from others. And that's why he is so important for this young squad to grow. 'And just believe in his qualities. He's still in the Premiership and wants to be in the Premiership. Some players would have lowered maybe the standard around. So, but it just shows his mentality that he knows his quality and he knows he is helping a lot. I know Moyesey (Everton manager David Moyes) well and he respects him so much. So, no, it's big up for him, like we say in Jamaica,' Hallgrímsson said, smiling with the reference to his last job before coming to Ireland. 'We're selecting him (Coleman) even though he has little playing time. We've been in contact, so he knows our thoughts and we would like to have him. To have experience like him and to have leadership skills like him would be really important once you qualify for the World Cup, for example. So hopefully two more years.'
