MALTA

The exciting Irish team we would like to see face Malta

A victory is necessary.

Ireland host Malta in a friendly match on Sunday night, days after a disappointing defeat at home to Norway.

Stephen Kenny will want his team to bounce back, and this is the team we think can do it.

Gavin Bazunu

Bazunu looked shaky at times against Norway, and while Kenny should be upset with the team that lost on Thursday, now is not the time to hit the reset button.

Bazunu was our best player in 2021, and he needs to gain more and more experience playing at international level.

Matt Doherty

Doherty needs to offer more going forward against Malta, as he will not actually be playing as a full-back. In a game where Ireland will have a lot of the ball, he should be a right midfielder, who drops back when some defense is needed.

Nathan Collins

The first name on the team sheet, and despite a small mistake against Norway, you get the feeling that we would be in a great place if we had 11 players as good as Collins.

John Egan

Another man who was at fault for a goal against Norway, but his value in this team is clear to all.

He will likely captain on the night, and has shown himself to be a real goal threat in recent months as well.

Dara O’Shea

O’Shea rarely puts a foot wrong in an Ireland shirt, and with Andrew Omobamidele out injured at the minute, that place in the team is his.

Robbie Brady

Brady will be playing as a left wing back, but he should stay high up the field, even more so than Doherty.

The two defensive-minded midfielders can cover these wide positions, Brady’s job should be to pass balls to attacking players.

Josh Cullen

A player who helps Ireland keep the ball, which we will be looking to do against Malta. Hopefully some of his passes will be run through the lines for more attacking players throughout the night.

Alan Browne

Jayson Molumby is a good player for certain games, but Ireland will not need a destroyer in the midfield against Malta. We need someone to hold the ball.

Browne can pop up with a goal tooand will likely be rewarded for his clean sheet on Thursday night.

Will Smallbone

Smallbone deserves his debut, if only to show those in the Under-21 squad that performing at a high level brings you rewards.

Furthermore, we need a link from the midfielders to the forwards, and the Stoke City man can do that.

Chiedozie Ogbene

Very unfortunate that he doesn’t start against Norway, and he certainly deserves his chance on Sunday night.

In an away game, there could be a chance for Malta to leave a high line for Ireland to exploit, and with Ogbene’s fast pace, he could really help stretch the game.

Michael Obafemi

He barely touched the ball against Norway, but all Irish fans know how much he has to offer. It’s a shame Troy Parrott is injured, as the two have a great relationship, but he and Ogbene can do well catches something similar.

This should allow Jamie McGrath and Evan Ferguson to come on at or shortly after half-time to show what they can do.

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