Game on as Trapattoni faces press this week

ON SOCCER:Most of the media here will give new coach Giovanni Trapattoni time to find his feet

SINCE THE painfully protracted selection procedure ended a couple of months back and Giovanni Trapattoni was named Republic of Ireland manager, a phony peace has reigned in Irish football. Come Thursday, when the Italian takes on his new role, that will be behind us and, if recent history has taught us anything, we will be into a brief period of sizing up after which, amid general recriminations, relations between new man and media will quickly go into decline.

The early days of Brian Kerr's tenure aside, recent press relations with Ireland managers could rarely have been characterised as anything better than uneasy. Leaving a great many other factors aside, the insistence of those managers on reading what is written about them clearly has been one of the key problems.

Since Jack Charlton departed, his successors have all claimed they did not read newspapers. But when Mick McCarthy picked a rather pointless fight over formations with one journalist at a press conference midway through his tenure elder hacks concluded the former Ireland skipper was still hurting over an article in 1988 in which the offending reporter had suggested it might be rash of Charlton to start the Euro 88 games with McCarthy in the team.

After the initial sweetness, things swiftly went sour with Kerr.

Steve Staunton always faced an uphill task to convince a sceptical media he was the man for the job, and he was understandably upset when it started to become clear he had failed to do so.

Since Trapattoni was appointed, access to the Italian has been strictly limited because of his determination to finish one job before he started the other.

But with Red Bull Salzburg having wrapped up their campaign at the weekend with a 1-1 draw at "Cashpoint" SCR Altach, we're finally going to get the chance to get acquainted with the 69-year-old when he is officially unveiled at the RDS on Thursday.

It's hard to imagine he'll make as telling an impression as either of his two most recent predecessors.

Kerr got a standing ovation from most of those who attended his bash in the Shelbourne Hotel, his confident performance seeming to underline why so many people within the game - journalists, managers and administrators - had wanted to see him get a crack at it.

Staunton, on the other hand, looked uncomfortable at the Mansion House despite having been extensively coached beforehand, and his calamitous "I'm the gaffer" line haunted him until the day he lost the job.

Trapattoni no doubt will be charming but while his English is actually better than had been suggested when he first emerged as a contender for the post, the language barrier will probably ensure things are safe but a little stilted in Ballsbridge.

The scale of the admiration expressed for the veteran Italian by many of those who have worked with him suggests he has a way with people he wants to engage positively with.

But history suggests he is not kind to those who cross him and anyone wanting to see how he reacts when he feels his players have let him down or journalists have been unduly critical should check out a couple of his press conferences on YouTube, most notably the subtitled one from his days at Bayern when he lambasts half his squad (just type his name and Strunz).

Had Salzburg retained their league title he would arrive in Dublin this week with a little more wind in his sails. But their poor form during the run-in combined with a seven-match winning streak by Rapid Vienna consigned them to second place.

In fact, regardless of all his side's other slip-ups, the two clubs' placings would have been reversed had Salzburg merely narrowly beaten their rivals at home a few weeks back rather than losing 7-0, a staggering result that clearly shocked the coach.

Still, most observers here remain convinced Trapattoni was the best of the recruitment panel's options, and it seems safe to assume most of the media here will give him time to find his feet and show what he can do.

Early dissent, though, does seem likely from some supporters of Terry Venables's candidacy, including one of the country's most prominent football reporters and media commentators - Cathal Dervan - who has already made his position fairly clear.

Though not the only sceptic regarding the appointment, Dervan has been the most outspoken, referring to Trapattoni as "Gio the geriatric" and repeatedly arguing the Italian's best days are well behind him.

Dervan has also been fiercely critical of Liam Brady, not least when it emerged recently the former midfielder had made an attempt to recruit Tottenham's Jamie O'Hara for the Republic, unaware the player was ineligible to switch from England because he had turned 21.

A useful indication of how animosity between management teams and media is generated in these circumstances is provided by the fact that while championing Venables for the job Dervan had suggested in a positive way the Londoner would move to bag O'Hara if appointed.

At the time the article appeared, the midfielder had already turned 21 and could not therefore have made the switch.

All of which goes to show we can all make mistakes.

Given the distance at which he will be operating from the press here and the fact they will be writing about him in what is probably his third or fourth language, it seems unlikely Trapattoni will be overly put out by what his critics say, at least in the early days when they are unlikely to be too numerous.

What will be intriguing, though, is how Brady handles any flak. The 52-year-old has done little to kill off the suspicion he would fancy succeeding Trapattoni and if things go well he should be in a good position.

Unless there is a change of regime within Abbotstown it is impossible to imagine Dave O'Leary getting the job or Roy Keane wanting it.

Steve Coppell's near-honorary-Irishman status makes him a viable contender but the reality is if Trapattoni decides to quit in two years' time and the alternative is another extended search, a handover to Brady would not be the most outlandish of prospects.

Brady's recent performance on RTÉ when fun was made of Arsène Wenger suggests he might have more trouble than his new manager in maintaining cordial relations with the media when honeymoon is over.

In the circumstances, all he, like the rest of us, can do is hope the team does well. As for the Trap, he might yet end up wishing that guy Strunz was Irish.