Euroscene: If Brian Kerr did not already know it, Albania's 3-1 win against Russia on Saturday will have been a timely reminder that Ireland's opponents in Tirana tomorrow night represent tough opposition, writes Paddy Agnew's.
The win over the Russians in the little northern town of Shkoder represented an historic moment for Albania, as illustrated by the reaction of the Albanian Prime Minister, Fatos Nano, one of the 16,000 who attended the game: "Albania can now say it has beaten a former superpower," he chortled.
Never again, it seems, will we see matches such as the Albania v Spain World Cup qualifier of September 1993, in which Spain were 3-0 up after 20 minutes and eventually won 5-1, in the face of a lack of Albanian resistance.
Among those in the Qemal Stafa national stadium in Tirana that day was the then-Ireland manager, Jack Charlton, who feared Spain's overwhelming win might cost Ireland a place at the '94 World Cup finals. (In the end, of course, the Tirana result mattered little, as both Ireland and Spain qualified.)
Albania may still be the poorest country in Europe, but its footballers have migrated all over Europe. For example, the three players on the scoresheet against Russia play their club football in Germany and Italy.
Striker Altkin Rraktlli (30th minute) plays with Bundesliga side Unterhaching; midfielder Altin Lala (79th) plays with Hannover, also in the Bundesliga; while striker Igle Tare (83rd) has scored 11 goals in the last two seasons for Serie A side Brescia alongside Roberto Baggio.
There is another reason to treat Albania with respect, and that concerns their coach, 47-year-old former West German international Hans-Peter Briegel, who made his debut on the Albanian bench against Russia on Saturday.
A defender of the "uncompromising and robust" variety in the West German team that won the 1980 European Championships, as well as finishing runners-up in the 1982 and 1986 World Cups, Briegel was nothing if not a combative competitor.
When he took over the Albanian national team in December, in the wake of the 4-1 drubbing by Russia in Volgograd that prompted the resignation of his predecessor, Italian Beppe Dossena, Briegel was careful not to make rash promises.
"I can't promise anything," he said. "It's like starting from scratch for me when you accept a job like this. I don't have too many tools to work with, but despite being one of the smallest football nations in Europe, Albania have some technically refined players."
Against Russia, not only did his side show some technique but, more importantly, they also showed a willingness to battle, overcoming the disappointment both of an early penalty miss and a 76th-minute equaliser to storm back with two more goals.
Not surprisingly, Briegel was afterwards more full of praise for his side's "90-minute-long effort" than for any "technical refinement".
With an away draw against Switzerland and a home win against Russia from their first three games, Albania obviously come into tomorrow night's match in (worryingly) buoyant mood, as well as being one point ahead of Ireland in third place in the Group 10 standings.
Not only are Saturday's goalscorers, Rraktlli, Lala and Tare, useful players, but men like defenders Geri Cipi (Ghent), midfielders Klodian Duro (Malatispor, Turkey), Besnik Hasi (Anderlecht), Fatmir Vata (Bielfeld) and Ervin Skela (Eintracht Frankfurt) can all call on top-level European experience.
For the time being, though, coach Briegel is playing a canny game, talking up Ireland: "As a small country, we cannot be looking at the overall group situation but rather at the next game with Ireland, who are a stronger side than Russia."
Let's wait until Tirana for verification on that one, Hans-Peter.
