2024 Qualifying Group B: Republic of Ireland v Greece (Friday, Aviva Stadium, 7.45pm)
ALL of a sudden, Shane Duffy felt 100 years old when he was asked could he still be around for Euro 2028 with Ireland confirmed as a joint host earlier this week.
The Aviva Stadium and a rebuilt Casement Park will host Euro finals games in five years’ time.
Asked by a reporter at yesterday’s pre-match press conference ahead of their Euro 2024 qualifier with Greece might he hang around for those championships, Duffy’s shoulders shrank.
Wearing a wide smile, the big Derryman replied: “I’m just trying to survive until Friday, never mind 2028!
“I can’t look that far ahead, honestly. I didn’t even know where I was last year. I’m proud to be back involved. I’m just trying to keep my body in the best condition as best I can.”
Duffy returned to the Ireland fold for last month’s double header with France and Holland after a year out of the international picture due to injury and lack of club action.
Now playing regularly with Championship outfit Norwich City, Duffy says he will continue to play for his country for as long as he’s asked.
“Listen, I’ll never give up. I’m 31 now. I don’t know where I’m going to be (at 36). I know we’ve got a bright future for 2028.
“That’s really exciting but I would never outstay my stay, if I’m not performing at that level.
“I don’t know where I’m going to be 2028. I’ll be the kit man or something!
“I wish I was involved - I hope I am, in some way, but it’s a long way away.
“But it’s an amazing thing to have the Euros in Dublin. It’ll be the pinnacle of the players’ careers.”
One man who will probably be approaching his peak in 2028 is Ireland’s teenage sensation Evan Ferguson.
Already lighting up the English Premier League and earning glowing reviews from pundits Alan Shearer and Ian Wright, Duffy feels Ferguson is the real deal.
“First of all, he’s a great boy,” Duffy says of Ferguson, who missed last month’s games against France and Holland with injury.
“He has a really good head on his shoulders. He’s humble, first and foremost, and never gets ahead of himself.
“He came to Brighton at 16 and he was like a man already. He stood out unbelievably well. He’s got a lot of potential. I’d just always say that he’s only 18 and there’s a lot of pressure on him already.
“He will produce. For me, he’s got everything to be a top striker in the Premier League and in Europe. He just needs to keep going the way he’s going. He’s the full package, he’s a strong boy, he’s a top finisher, he’s willing to work for the team and he’s willing to learn and has a really bright future.”
Ireland’s Euro 2024 qualification hopes are virtually extinguished, albeit not mathematically, but Duffy insists it won’t stop them trying to get some points on the board and said that they “owe” Greece for Ireland’s shattering defeat in Athens back in June.
The Republic have conceded so many goals from long range and while keeping clean sheets wasn’t a problem earlier in Stephen Kenny’s tenure, it is now.
Their emphatic 3-0 win over Scotland in the Nations League in June 2022 was the last meaningful clean sheet they managed.
“It's something we’re obviously we're looking at,” said Duffy, now the sole survivor of Euro 2016, the last time Ireland qualified for a major tournament.
“As a defender, obviously, we want to keep clean sheets and we haven't. It's disappointing, the goals. I feel like we could have done something about them, that's down to us as players.
“We need to perform better in defensive actions and close shots down more. I feel like we’ve been a little bit unlucky with some of the long-range goals but we’re working very hard to get that clean sheet as it gives us a platform to go and win games.”
