Goosebumps all over again.
Thursday was a sad day for the Irish football community as we bid farewell to one of the greatest and probably most underappreciated talents the country has seen for many a year.
At the age of 35, Wes Hoolahan confirmed that he was retiring from international football after a somewhat turbulent career in the green jersey.
While the former Shelbourne man made 40 appearances and scored three goals, he didn’t make his competitive debut until he was 31 and became something of a cause célèbre under both Giovanni Trapattoni and Martin O’Neill, neither of whom played him as often as many Irish fans would have liked.
A creative genius and the type of player who comes along once in a generation in this country, there were plenty of deserving tributes to Hoolahan on Thursday and the FAI paid him one of their own by releasing never-before-seen footage of his memorable goal against Sweden from the Stade de France.
Prepare to have the hairs on the back of your neck stand up all over again.
To hail the great man following his retirement, here is some never before seen footage of that wonder goal at the Stade de France! #ThanksWes #COYBIG pic.twitter.com/EEmagGpRue
— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) February 8, 2018
We’ll always have Paris, Wes; thanks for the memories.
