Features

It was a frustrating week for the majority of Irish footballers plying their trade outside the British Isles, although David O'Leary's Al-Ahli were victorious.

By Conor Hogan

Footballers around the world use their talents to travel to different countries. For instance, there are over 10,000 Brazilians playing the game professionally around the planet. Irish people have a tradition of travelling across the world, and there are over 80 million people on this planet of Irish descent.

Irish footballers are a marked contrast to that, however and rarely venture further abroad than Southend. This week, we take a look at five players and one manager who have made the plunge, and how they fared in their team’s last fixture.

Dominic Foley (Cercle Brugge)

The 34-year-old made a rare start for Cercle on 31 October in the Belgian Cup against Lille. He played well and his team won 4-0, though once again he wasn’t able to get on the score sheet. The next two matches weren’t as happy for the Bruges club, as after going on a seven-match unbeaten run, they lost to Westerlo and Gent.

Foley only played ten of those 180 minutes, coming on as a late substitute for 19-year-old Lukas Van Eenoo in the Gent game. His team has now slipped back into eighth position in the Belgian Pro League table.

David O’Leary (Al-Ahli)

There hasn’t been any league action in the UAE since the 26 October, though O’Leary’s Al Ahli have been involved in Cup action. Al Ahli defeated Al Sharjah 5-2 at the Rashed Stadium in Dubai and are top of their Emirates Cup group with four points from two matches.

They are currently sixth in the UAE Premier League, six points behind leaders Al Jazira and two points behind third place Al Wasl in the third place - the top three qualify for the Asian Champions League.

Padraig Amond (Pacos de Ferreira)

Two defeats in a week, 0-2 to Porto and 0-1 to Nacional, have seen Pacos drop down to 12th position in the 16-team Portuguese Liga. The defeat to Nacional was particularly hard to take, as the winner came in the 89th minute. Mathematically, however, they remain closer to fifth place than 15th.

Amond made his customary late substitute appearance in both matches, coming on in the 81st minute against Porto and in the 82nd against Nacional. He hasn’t scored yet for the Portuguese club, though his five appearance add up to only 90 minutes of playing time.

Matthew Cassidy (AEL Limassol)

22-year-old defender Cassidy made his first appearance of the season for bottom of the Cypriot First division AEL Limassol in their match against fourth-placed AEK. He came on as a substitute in the 70th minute for Dutch midfielder Nicky Hoffs with his team leading 1-0, though unfortunately for him they weren’t able to hang on.

Two late goals condemned AEL to their fourth defeat of the season. Traditionally one of the biggest teams in Cyprus, AEL’s start has been absolutely dreadful. Since taking over from Dušan Uhrin Jr on 22 September, manager Mihai Stoichiţă has drawn three matches, lost three and won none. Cassidy’s old club, Enosis, are currently in fifth place.

Cillian Sheridan (CSKA Sofia)

CSKA Sofia have been victorious in their last four matches, though it has been a frustrating time for Sheridan, who has started all of them on the bench. The Donegal man hasn’t played a single minute of his team’s last 270 - his last appearance coming on the 24 October, when he came on as a second half substitute in CSKA’s 4-2 away win to Minyor Pernik.

After a terrible start to the season, a six-match unbeaten run has seen the Sofia side reel in the sides ahead of them in the table. They are currently in sixth place, though they are only four points behind second placed Levski Sofia.

Aiden McGeady (Spartak Moscow)

The 24-year-old gave Rubin defender Vitaly Kaleshin a torrid time during Spartak’s last match in the Central Stadium in Kazan on 8 November. The Glasgow-born winger was especially dangerous on the counter-attack in the second half, as his team defended deep and broke quickly. He almost scored a goal when he dribbled past several Rubin players, only for his shot to be blocked by Spanish centre-half César Navas.

After having the better of the first half, Spartak took the lead just before half-time, when Brazilian striker Welliton netted for the 18th time this season. Rubin needed a win to have any chance of retaining their league title and pushed Spartak hard in the second-half. Valery Karpin’s side soaked up most of the pressure, however and were disappointed to concede a 94th minute Sergey Kornilenko equaliser.

It was Spartak’s ninth league game without loss, however and while a Champions League spot looks unlikely, their form will give them a lot of encouragement for next season. McGeady will be especially happy, as he has provided his team with five assists and two goals in his seven appearances, and has yet to finish on the losing side in a Russian Top League match.