Irish media react to Everton captain Seamus Coleman in valiant Republic of Ireland defeat v France
Everton captain Seamus Coleman was praised by the Irish media for his performance in the Republic of Ireland’s valiant 1-0 defeat to France on Friday night (27 March).
Benjamin Pavard’s wondergoal, which was matched by some equally eye-catching saves from French stopper Mike Maignan denied Stephen Kenny’s side a famous result at the Aviva Stadium.
Coleman started in a wing-back role within a back-five and drew high praise for his performance against the Qatar World Cup finalists.
RTE provided the Toffees defender with a glowing review for his leadership in defeat, giving him a 7/10 rating in their player ratings.
They wrote: “If the role of a full-back is about covering space and linking up with a back three and the midfield, he epitomised that against France.
“Coleman kept running, and he was able to find the time to play balls through to the Irish forwards. He led by example and did not once look tired over an exhausting 90 minutes against the World Cup runners-up.”
The Irish Mirror were even more impressed with Coleman’s performance, giving him a joint-highest rating of 8/10 in their assessment of the match.
They wrote: “A top-notch captain’s display after climbing off the treatment table to play.”
Determined
Every time you think Coleman may be on his last legs and nearing retirement, he comes out with a performance of this ilk.
The Everton veteran is a terrific professional and carries on working to his 100% max, no matter if he is captaining his team or sitting on the bench.
Lining up against possibly the world’s most explosive player Kylian Mbappe, Coleman defended dutifully and stuck to his task all night long. His energy, both in attack and defence, was crucial to the Republic of Ireland staying in the game for so long and almost pulling off a famous result against Didier Deschamps’ side.
You can already see the energy that Sean Dyche has poured back into the full-back’s tank, and it would come as no surprise to see Coleman for another season at Goodison Park.
The defender is likely to be a fundamental figure in Everton’s fight against relegation over the coming months, and Dyche will hope he can carry on rolling out performances of this vintage.