Should Andy Reid be in the Republic of Ireland squad?

A big response produced an amazing result - nobody agreed with Giovanni Trappatoni!

YES: Oisín Gregorian(17) from De La Salle Churchtown in Dublin says: OF COURSE Andy Reid deserves a place in the Irish squad. He can offer Ireland a plan B and can be effective on either wing, making him a decent alternative should Damien Duff, Aiden McGeady or Stephen Hunt be unavailable.

Some have branded his omission as ludicrous, stupid and provocative and, yes, I do agree with them.

Reid, it appears, simply does not fit into the system Trapattoni has used in his brief tenure so far, instead putting his trust in Glenn Whelan (dubbed recently as the new Gattuso by the manager) and Darron Gibson.

We have taken seven out of a possible nine points in an unbeaten start in World Cup Qualification but you have to ask how Whelan and Gibson would fare against the likes of the Italians and the Bulgarians who are, physically, very strong in midfield and could easily dominate the pair - as the Polish managed to do last week.

They will continue to develop but Ireland and its fans (including myself) are looking for results now.

The Republic of Ireland soccer team is small enough as it is and leaving one of our better players in the abyss and replacing him with one player who Tony Pulis, the Stoke City manager, rarely starts and another who plays in the Premier League reserves is baffling.

Think about it - how far away is Gibson from the Manchester United first team? Yet he manages to start for his national team? There is clearly something wrong here.

Okay, Andy Reid may not be a sure starter for Sunderland but you can bet your house over a season he would see more Premier League action than the likes of Gibson and Whelan.

Our central midfield is depleted enough as it is and thats not to include the self-imposed exile of Stephen Ireland, one of the countrys brightest young talents.

Andy Reid would easily slot into our central midfield. Hes quick, can hold the ball up smartly, can see that pass between midfield and attack that can split a defence and when it comes to dead ball opportunities he can whip the ball in with precision and pace or test the goalkeeper from within his range.

Trapattonis midfield is certainly not in the class of the one Jack Charlton was blessed with, that had the likes of Ronnie Whelan, Paul McGrath and Andy Townsend.

Ireland does not have the luxury of the bigger nations like England or Italy where their midfield resources are double the likes of ours.

Ireland needs Andy Reid, at least in the squad. His total omission from the Irish squad is something I dont get. There should be at least a place in the squad for him, in my honest opinion.

Quite simply, making an outcast of Reid deprives the country of a precious option.

YES: Kevin Quinlan(15), from Christian Brothers College Cork says:

FIRST WE had two, now we have none! With Steven Reid out for the rest of the season (again) and his namesake Andy cast into the international wilderness, Ireland are without two massive players for the majority of the campaign, not to mention Stephen "Superman" Ireland.

This Irish team, devoid of any creativity - possibly apart from brief glimpses from Aiden McGeady - has created little in the way of chances during Giovanni Trapattoni's reign: just eight goals scored in seven games against some poor opposition, with few other chances to recall.

Surely the team should revolve around a player with one of the best passing abilities in the Premier League? The creative ability of Reid would be an invaluable asset to this beleaguered set-up from open play and set-pieces, from which he is deadly.

Is it fair to say that Reid simply doesn't fit into Trapattoni's vision of his Ireland team? Well, it seems that his past tactical systems have all included space for that bit of class to dictate the tempo of the game. His famous Juventus team contained Liam Brady and the now Uefa chief Michel Platini, but seemingly that has all changed.

Trapattoni has always been an admirer of the Catenaccio system, his preferred option for more defensive players in midfield, even though he has not chosen traditional defensive midfield players for Ireland, instead looking to convert Glenn Whelan and Darron Gibson. These two converts have amassed just five Premier League appearances, and just one start, between them, in contrast to Andy Reid's 12 this season, despite injuries.

It was clear from the start that Trapattoni would always be compared to Ireland's last foreign manager, Jack Charlton. Charlton also favoured the cautious approach to the game, sacrificing skilled players such as David O'Leary just because he did not fall into his vision of a defender.

But the best comparison between the two is when you look at the Brady and Reid issue. Reid is moulded from the Brady genre of a sweet and cultured left foot, with the ability to switch the play at will. Both are having their international careers sacrificed by managers with cautious approaches, with Brady eventually dropped from the squad heading to Euro '88.

People may have expected Brady to fight in Reid's corner, just as he did against Steve Staunton, albeit from the safety of the RTÉ panel, but he has turned out to be nothing but Trapattoni's link to the Irish press, clearly just voicing the manager's opinions, thus losing the respect of many Irish fans.

But whether it's personal differences or just the wrong manager at the wrong time for Reid, Ireland has lost its creative spark in the centre of midfield. It's Trapattoni's gamble, it may not come off - and if it doesn't there'll be a crowd at Croke Park screaming "We told you so!"

NEXT WEEK'S SUBJECT

Brian Cody or Mickey Harte - who was the GAA's manager of the year?Send us your thoughts in about 500 words with your name, age, school and a photo of yourself to schoolofsport@irish-times.ie and we will publish the two best responses. Entries must reach us by 6.00pm next Sunday, November 30th.