London? Rome? Paris? No. After becoming the world’s most expensive player in 2009. Cristiano Ronaldo would make his Real Madrid debut in … Tallaght
Tag: ireland
This feature is a part of RETEUROSPECTIVE The stadium shone a shade of emerald green and those who didn’t know the words to ‘The Fields of Athenry’ most likely did by the…
Few Irishman have ever possessed more ability than Paddy McCourt. The magical winger, however, failed to turn that ability into a lasting career at the top
The time may not be right to unite Ireland’s football teams, but 106 years on from their last tournament triumph, it provides something to think about
The great Paul McGrath was a colossus on the pitch for Aston Villa and Ireland but, like everyone watching on, a human all the same
Roy Keane began the 1990s as a semi-pro footballer in Ireland and ended it as Manchester United’s historic treble-winning captain
This feature is part of Virtuoso In the summer of 1994, a 34-year-old Paul McGrath travelled to the United States to play in Ireland’s second ever World Cup. To say that the…
WHEN A FOOTBALL FAN attempts to objectively weigh up their team’s chances for a big game, the starting line-up often seems to either boost or dampen their optimism. Such a reaction is…
Few Irish talents have ever been greater than Liam Whelan, a man who Sir Matt Busby rated as highly as anyone but who perished far soon at the age of 22
Few who have witnessed Jeffrey’s titanic impact on the Northern Irish game would bet against him securing his 32nd domestic trophy in short order
DESPITE 15 YEARS having past since Denis Irwin pulled on the red jersey of Manchester United for the final time, the former Irish International still remains a firm favourite of the United…
In 2017, Real Betis unveiled a bust of former manager Patrick O’Connell at the Estadio Benito Villamarín to honour their only LaLiga title, won under the Irishman’s management in 1935. The bust…
THE BEST STORIES are frequently those which seem scarcely believable; full of paradoxes and contradictions, with little room for logic or genuine coherence. Add a sense of mystery and the account suddenly…
Illustration by Federico Manasse When Robbie Keane first began turning heads with the Republic of Ireland, scoring two goals against Malta in a 5-0 European Championship qualifying match, he also spun the…
Jolted by an unexpected and most unpleasant sensation, the elegant defender fell to the turf. The Wimbledon striker, John Fashanu, was the closest opponent to him as a sharp, shooting pain pierced…
The footage was grainy, but there’s no doubting who it was – John Delaney, head of the Football Association of Ireland, in front of a crowd in a darkly lit bar singing…
Much has often been made of the reduced number of Republic of Ireland players plying their trade in the top flights, with particular emphasis on the Premier League, which has become something…
One hundred and sixteen years. With every step taken beneath the stand on the Connaught Street side of Dalymount Park, there is an eerie echoing sound of crunching glass and rubble. There are…