Defiant Giovanni Trapattoni prepared to stay until the bitter end with Ireland

Giovanni Trapattoni has acknowledged that his time as Ireland manager is bound to end in the event that Ireland don’t qualify for the next World Cup but says he intends to stay until the end of his contract expires next June unless the FAI seeks to remove him. After that, he says, he will look to take on a new challenge.

The 74-year-old says he has not given up on the team making it to Brazil somehow but admitted that after Friday’s night’s defeat by Sweden, finishing third in the group ahead of Austria is now a far more realistic target.

“I don’t expect, after this campaign, to go up again (with Ireland) in the future,” said the Italian who has been manager of the team since early 2008 on Saturday morning. “But after five years I think we have achieved a good result. We have changed the team, improved the ranking (not actually true), we have moved on players and discovered many others. In France, the first time, you know, we deserved to go through. Then we achieved qualification (for Poland). Obviously I thought until yesterday that we could also qualify (this time). Now, maybe, the third position could be also a good result for us.”

Like his players, Trapattoni is understandably reluctant to publicly concede defeat completely in relation to qualification and having reminded his players earlier in the morning that that they are not mathematically out of things yet, he said: “It’s taken for granted that Sweden can beat Kazakhstan but with the football Kazakhstan play at home I have hope.”

A glance at the Group C table does little to inspire much optimism, however, and even if the Swedes were to drop points in Astana, Ireland winning in Vienna looks to be a long shot which would have to be followed by other favourable results.

Miss out on play-off
At the end of all that,in any case, there is the distinct possibility at this stage that Group C will produce the second placed team with the lowest number of points, something that would ensure the runners-up miss out on a play-off place anyway.

The association, meanwhile, is rumoured to be exploring potential fall-back plans for the November play-off dates with a game in Australia said to be a possibility, as is one in Poland, potentially in Poznan. A spokesman declined to comment either way, insisting that the focus at the moment is still on the possibility that the team might have play-offs to occupy it.

Trapattoni seems intent on still being in charge at that stage with the Italian suggesting that he sees no reason not to see out the remaining nine months of his contract regardless of how the campaign ends.

He did say that he would have no problem stepping aside if asked to do so by his employers but the sense was very much that he would expect his contract to be paid up, something that, if his backroom team is factored in, would cost the association something in the region of €1 million. The cost will decline as the end date approaches and if a replacement who was able to take over immediately was somehow identified then there would be some advantage in the giving him as much time as possible to settle into the job.

Given its track record, however, there is likely to be a long selection process and so, with nothing to be gained by replacing him with a caretaker, Trapattoni could make it to June or close to it unless he is offered an alternative position.

“If a new manager is available that’s a problem for the FAI,” he said. “But most managers are engaged with a club.” On whether he would walk away he replied: “No, I can continue and help the next (manager). During that time I can show also the next manager where he can place his trust and how to develop the players.”

Stands over substitutions
Earlier he had defended his decision to make only like-for-like substitutions on Friday night, insisting that he did not have "a Platini, Boniek, Tardelli or Ibra" on the bench. He insisted, though, that his best Irish players were on the pitch and, more generally, in the squad and predicted that his successor would not change things.

When it was suggested that he might feel the Irish players are beneath him, he replied: “I had many opportunities, with other countries, more famous. But I believe in this group, I believe in this evolution . . . in Stockholm I think we deserved to win. But yesterday we lost, even though we began again playing very well. I believe in our way. We discovered other young. We had to choose the new.”

Asked if not getting Ireland to the World Cup would constitute the greatest disappointment of his career, he replied: “No. I lost also the Champions League but after one year later won the final. Football is like that. There is disappointment . . . Maybe I will have the opportunity to go with other teams, if not the Irish, maybe another. Why not?”

He confirmed that he would look to work again with another team if he leaves his post.