O’Neill like the proud father whose boy has finally come good

For the best part of a year now Martin O’Neill has poked fun at Aiden McGeady but always with a fondness that suggested he felt the player was a little bit special. In Tbilisi last night he hailed him like a proud dad who had always known his kid would come good.

The former Celtic winger should be up there with the game's greats, he suggested, and while the player might have a little more to do to live up to the billing, if anyone who takes the time to compile the evidence, his winner last night is sure to make the showreel.

"He's the only player who would have been capable of scoring that goal tonight," said the Ireland manager with complete conviction. "He's a fantastic talent. He should be right up there with the finest of the players. He has the talent, and he's shown that tonight. I know there's a lot of talk of his goals-to-games ratio but that's been improved tonight."

More broadly, the manager acknowledged he had expected a little more of the Georgians before the game and of his own players at times during it. The locals, it seemed, started late and knocked off early, and Ireland, he felt, might have asserted themselves a little more in the circumstances.

In control

“I thought that we had plenty of possession, plenty of passes, and sometimes maybe away from home that’s okay,” he said. “If

Georgia

were going to come at us in great numbers, at least in that part of the game we could take the sting out. I think we were in control of the game, we scored a goal and went in front. And I think we were actually at our most comfortable when they scored but of course that changed the momentum of the game.

“It gave them confidence, it gave the crowd something to shout about. There were moments in the second half which were worrying. We’ve seen it through, though. There are improvements to be made. We’ve won away from home, which is terrific, but there are improvements to come.

“There were some wayward crosses when we needed it most and just before McGeady scored they had a chance; you didn’t want to lose a game that you had been in reasonable control of.

“But I was maybe a little surprised because I think that Georgia towards the end of the game looked as if they were settling for a draw. There are a number of reasons for them to do that; sometimes winning at home is hard too and it’s their first game of the campaign, but from what I’ve seen, particularly from the game against France, they weren’t at their very best tonight.”

Embarrassed

Of the Irish, McGeady was probably the closest to his best, and he clearly enjoyed the moment even if, he admitted, the round of applause he received when he joined the rest of the players in the dressing room had embarrassed him just a little.

The 28-year-old admitted that Ireland had got the rub of the green a little with their opener but he was justifiably proud of his winner.

“Yeah, the second goal was all about concentrating on my touch,” he said. “I had my back to the goal and I just thought I’d try something. It came off for me. It doesn’t happen very often for me but thankfully it went in.”

Other players admit that they get onto the midfielder on occasion because they know just how good he can be, and McGeady fairly readily acknowledges that he has more to give. “I’ve played well but not still what I’m capable of. I’m off to a great start, though, and so is the team and hopefully I can build on it.

Goal tally

“I try not to think about it, though, because it took so long before I scored my first goal. I was going into every game thinking, ‘I need to score, I need to score’. But it’s funny. When you don’t think about it, it just happens. Obviously I want to score more. I’ve nearly doubled my goal tally for Ireland tonight. I know I need to score more, especially for Ireland. It’s not too bad at club level. But with Ireland I need to push on.”

From a distance, the obvious conclusion is that his improvement so far is linked with the arrival of the manager who did so much to nurture him through the early days of his club career, and McGeady admits it’s probably a factor.

Off-hand remarks

“Maybe sub-consciously there’s a little bit of belief there. He can make these off-hand remarks, things he says to you, like about the ability that I have and that if I concentrated more or didn’t make mistakes, I could be up there with other players in Europe.

“Maybe he’s just saying it but it can give you belief. He’s always been like that, even at Celtic. I’m happy within myself. Everyone would like to have a better career. I’ve played top level, the Champions League. And if my career finished now, I could look back happily on it. But you always want to do better.”

Last night he took a big step on that road, and Ireland took a significant one too towards France and a return to the European Championships where the whole group – not just McGeady – would have a point to prove.