Irish legend slams Stephen Kelly over starting XI, claims Everton ace makes ‘huge difference’
Irish legend Johnny Giles has slammed Stephen Kelly for his decision to start Matt Doherty over Everton defender Seamus Coleman in the Nations League.
The former Leeds and Ireland player and coach claimed that Doherty is too attacking for his national side and leaves too many holes.
Ireland came away with only one point from their two games this week, and that was thanks to a last-gasp equaliser against Bulgaria.
Giles believes that Coleman should be given that role back in the next international break, which is only one month away already.
“My take is that Seamus Coleman should be playing. He is a fullback and he gets forward at the right time,” he told the Stand podcast.
“Doherty is a very good player, doing what he did for Wolverhampton but he’s asked to do a totally different job for the Irish team.
“I think he’s making a mistake there. Doherty, when he played for Wolves, was a wing-back. There’s a huge difference in it because you don’t have the freedom to go and look for goals as he did pretty well for Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“That’s a big thing that has to be rectified. He either has to play as a fullback or Seamus Coleman has to come back into the team.”
Coleman made 27 appearances last season and will face less competition next season with Djibril Sidibe heading back to Monaco.
The 31-year-old made more tackles and fewer fouls last season than the campaign before that according to WhoScored, as he continues to improve with experience.
Giles has been there and done it in his career, playing in one of the best sides this country has ever seen and we believe that he is spot on with this latest piece of advice for the Irish.
In other Everton news, Gary Lineker has reacted to the Toffees confirming yet another signing at Goodison Park