Trappatoni says leave Stephen Ireland alone

Trap feels the hype could be keeping the Manchester City midfielder away

Ireland scored the winning goal for City against Blackburn on Saturday just days after Trap’s team lost their World Cup warm-up game 3-0 to Australia in Limerick.

As he reflected on that poor performance Trap also warned Irish fans to stop treating stay-away Stephen Ireland like a World Cup Messiah.

And the World Cup boss has also admitted for the first time that an Ireland return could lead to tension in his squad.

Trapattoni fears the weight of expectancy being placed on Ireland’s shoulders is too much for the young man from Cobh, Co. Cork.

The Manchester City star has been built up as the nation’s World Cup savior in some quarters ahead of an expected international return.

But Trap is fearful that those very same expectations could force Ireland into a permanent exile from his national team.

“People think that if and when he comes back Stephen Ireland will be a God, he will be the Messiah,” warned Trapattoni in the Irish Star Sunday.

“There is a great weight being placed on him, it is a great responsibility on his shoulders and he is very young.

“All over Ireland people are saying to him, ‘Come in, come in, come in’ and it is not an easy call for him to answer.

“I am sure that in the future he will come back but you have to have the fire, you have to want to play.

“With him there is a great expectancy and it is a great responsibility, not for me but for him.”

Trap also revealed that any potential return for Ireland needs to be handled delicately, almost two years after his last international appearance.

The Man City schemer hasn’t played in a green shirt since the 2-2 draw with Slovakia in Bratislava in September 2007.

Some senior Irish players have claimed any Ireland return will lead to dissent in the ranks from those who have soldiered on without him in the bid to reach South Africa.

And Trapattoni conceded, “You have to be gentle with the squad; you have got to stroke the squad like a cat.

“The squad have got the results so far in the World Cup group and in this instance you have to treat the squad like a cat.

“If you rub a cat in the right place it will purr and everything will be all right but if not.....”

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Nster.com