WHEN ROBBIE BRADY emerged from the thick Zenica fog to beat Asmir Begovic at his near post last November, he did so from the fourth different position his manager had asked him to play in Ireland’s successful Euro 2016 qualification campaign.
Brady’s versatility had often been looked upon as a negative, particularly when the young Dubliner was struggling to make the grade at Manchester United.
But when Martin O’Neill’s decision to move him into the number 10 slot paid off on that fateful night in Bosnia, it looked anything but.
Brady began the campaign on the fringes of the side after an injury-hampered 2013/14 Premier League season with Hull City. A rare start, on the left of midfield, in a warm-up friendly against Oman, showed his potential worth to the team.
The FIFA Technical Report on the 2014 World Cup highlighted the relative importance of set-pieces at international level; 11% of goals scored at that tournament originated from corner kicks, as compared to 2-3% in the UEFA Champions League.
This statistic, by no means an outlier, continued a trend seen at recent major championships, where international sides presumably pay for their relative lack of prep time at set-piece situations. Combined with that statistic, the dead ball specialism that Brady demonstrated against the Omanis that night — assisting two goals from corners and going very close with a direct free-kick — suggested that a place should be found for him in the side.
A passage from the FIFA 2014 World Cup Technical Report. Note also the self-congratulatory bold-font passage.
Yet, Ireland’s first three significant qualifiers (sorry, Gibraltar) saw Brady feature only from the bench on two occasions; introduced in the centre of midfield away to both Georgia and Scotland. It was notable how much Ireland’s dead ball delivery improved in the latter game when Brady entered the fray; recall also that Scotland’s winner emanated from a neat short corner routine.
Stephen Ward was selected at left back for all three of those games and did not impress. Ward, statistically the worst player at Euro 2012 according to WhoScored.com, was partially at fault for Georgia’s goal in the first game and his positioning also left a lot to be desired away to both the Germans and the Scots, sticking too tight to his centre-half and forcing James McClean to bail him out.
As such, it was no surprise when Brady got an opportunity to stake a claim for the role in a November friendly against the United States; just days after that deflating defeat to Scotland. Brady turned in a star performance, scoring two goals, including a marvelous free-kick.
That was enough for the then-Hull man to keep the gig for March’s crucial home tie against Poland. Alas, at best, his performance was a mixed bag. Brady’s error was responsible for Slawomir Peszko’s opener; but it was also his corner kick that resulted in Shane Long’s vital stoppage time equaliser.
Showing faith in his ability, O’Neill again selected Brady at left back for June’s reverse fixture against the Scots. It was here that the Irish manager made the key tactical switch that saved Ireland’s campaign, moving to a 4-3-1-2 formation designed to accommodate the talents of Wes Hoolahan.
Asked to effectively play as a wing back in this narrow diamond shape, Brady was in his element. Along with Hoolahan, Brady was the game’s top chance creator with three key passes. He also found a teammate with six crosses, five more than any other individual on the night. In addition, Brady again underlined his valuable dead ball prowess, delivering the corner that saw Jonathan Walters dispatch the rebound from Daryl Murphy’s saved header.
Unsurprisingly, both Brady’s presence in the left back position and the diamond formation were left unaltered for September’s narrow win at home to Georgia. The big surprise arrived in October, when O’Neill persisted with it against the Germans. Despite being tormented by cutbacks from the free German full backs in the first 20 minutes, Ireland eventually got to grips with their defensive task to secure a famous victory.
Key to this change in momentum was Robbie Brady, this time asked to play on the left of the diamond, getting much closer to the German right back, Matthias Ginter; Brady again demonstrating his tactical versatility by quickly coming to terms with an unfamiliar role.
Brady was back at left back again for October’s do-or-playoff away day in Poland. Without the unfit Hoolahan, O’Neill reverted to a 4-1-4-1 formation. Now tasked with playing a more conventional full back role, as he had been in the home fixture against the Poles, Brady again looked uncomfortable. He turned in arguably his worst performance of the campaign on and off the ball, completing a game-low 61% of his passes and committing the error that saw John O’Shea forced into taking a second yellow card to compensate.
That meant that Ward was back at left back for the away leg of the playoff against Bosnia, with Brady pushed forward to the left of midfield in a 4-4-1-1; O’Neill again deciding against the diamond due to the paucity of strikers at his disposal. Hoolahan, removed on the hour, struggled with pace of the game at number 10 and never looked likely to score the type of goal that Brady eventually did from the same position; scuttling on to a long punt into the channel and finishing coolly. Meanwhile, down the other end, Bosnia targeted Ward mercilessly through Edin Visca. They created chance after chance down that flank, with Ward lucky not pick up a second yellow card before he was eventually hooked.
Visca got far less joy in the second leg, with Brady returned to the left back position. With Ireland again configured in a diamond, Brady excelled in the role once more, bombing up and down the flank to combine with Jeff Hendrick. Walters’ second – Ireland’s insurance goal – stemmed from Brady’s outswinging free-kick. Although the striker received all the plaudits in the media, it was Brady – with a goal and an assist – that arguably made the greatest individual impact on Ireland’s play-off performance.
Brady’s improvement in the left back spot has continued this season, with the Irishman turning in some stellar performances in a weak Norwich side. Brady is both the highest-rated Irishman and Norwich player in the league this season, according to WhoScored.com. Underlining his ability to contribute in the attacking third, Brady is fifth in the league for accurate crosses per game; no other defender is in the top 10. Among defenders, only Alberto Moreno trumps him for chances created per game and Brady is a far better defender than the Spaniard; with 3.1 tackles per game, Brady stands a pleasantly surprising 15th in the league.
The versatile Dub has alternated between left back, left wing back and left midfield, even turning in one start at right back; his ability on his weaker right peg highlighted by his goal of the month contender against West Ham in February.
Brady’s development into a complete full back was further driven home by his recent performance against table-topping Leicester City. Although Norwich went down to a late Leonardo Ulloa goal, Brady was the clear man of the match, managing to finish as both the game’s top tackler and its top chance creator, despite facing off against the imperious Riyad Mahrez.
With Wes Hoolahan also enjoying arguably his best season in the top flight at the age of 33, the argument for O’Neill persisting with the diamond formation in June is strong.
It is the system that bests exploits the talents of the Norwich playmaker, with the discipline of Glenn Whelan and the energy of James McCarthy and Jeff Hendrick deployed behind him to compensate. The ability to field two strikers allows the manager to get the best out of Ireland’s channel-running battering rams, Shane Long and Jonathan Walters.
But perhaps most crucially, it also releases the talents of Seamus Coleman and Robbie Brady in the opposition half. The latter’s new-found completeness as a full back, paired with his potentially game-deciding set-piece prowess, may be the key to Ireland surpassing low expectations in a tough group this summer.