THERE MAY BE more talented players in the current Irish squad than Daryl Horgan, but Andy Boyle aside, none of the other 25 players who travelled out to Vienna have played at the same level as the Dundalk winger in Europe this season.
Adam Rooney, Jonny Hayes and Darren Randolph have also had a taste of Europa League action, but all three exited with their clubs prior to the group stages.
Many people may baulk at the suggestion that Horgan should start this evening and the main arguments why some think he shouldn’t are obvious — it’s supposedly too big a risk to throw an uncapped player in for a crucial World Cup qualifier, while many will feel he has yet to prove himself of being capable of playing at the highest level on a regular basis.
But firstly, let’s consider the alternatives to Horgan. James McClean, provided he’s deemed fit enough to play, is highly likely to occupy one wing. Jon Walters would normally play on the other side, but with Shane Long absent through injury, he is needed up front — none of Kevin Doyle, David McGoldrick or Adam Rooney even made the Euro 2016 squad, so it is hard to envisage any of the trio figuring from the start, particularly since Walters impressed in the lone forward role for the final third of the match against Moldova last month.
Consequently, another wide man will almost certainly be needed. Aside from Horgan, the ostensible contenders are Hayes, Aiden McGeady, Callum O’Dowda, Robbie Brady and possibly even Jeff Hendrick, if O’Neill opts to play Glenn Whelan and Harry Arter in the centre, with Wes Hoolahan in the number 10 role.
Although unless O’Neill opts to go with a surprise move and play someone like Ciaran Clark in the position, Brady will almost certainly start at left-back. Hendrick is more likely to play central midfield, so that would seemingly leave McGeady, Horgan, O’Dowda and Hayes to battle it out for the final right-wing spot.
O’Dowda is still quite inexperienced at 21 and his form has been less than scintillating, starting just six of Bristol City’s 16 games in the Championship so far this season and completing only one.
McGeady, meanwhile, started off his loan spell at Preston in encouraging fashion, but a recent injury has meant that the 30-year-old has played only once since the 1 October 2-0 win in the Championship against Aston Villa.
Hayes is the only option mentioned aside from Horgan who has played with relative consistency, featuring in nine of Aberdeen’s 12 matches in the Scottish Premiership, while impressing last season in particular, as he was named in the league’s Team of the Year in addition to being nominated for the PFA Scotland Player of the Year.
Yet Horgan has one big advantage over the other contenders mentioned — he has regular experience of playing against top sides in Europe this season.
Granted, the Austria-Ireland match would certainly be the biggest game of his career so far and there would be a degree of risk in choosing to put Horgan in, but it’s not as if the likes of Hayes, O’Dowda and McGeady have been playing in many big games recently.
Throwing in O’Dowda and Hayes would arguably be just as big a risk as placing faith in Horgan, while 31 January 2015 was the last time McGeady started a Premier League match.
Horgan may have been predominantly playing in the League of Ireland this season, but at least he has been playing, and excelling in the process with 10 league goals and numerous assists.
Martin O’Neill will also need to take into account his opponents when selecting the starting XI today. Make no mistake, despite their unconvincing start in Group D, Austria are a formidable side to face. September 2012 against Germany was the last time Marcel Koller’s men lost a home qualifier, while they are better than some recent results have suggested.
As was the case when Wales travelled to the Ernst Happel Stadion last month and the hosts enjoyed 62% possession, the Austrians are expected to play the game with the vast majority of the ball this evening.
One of Austria’s biggest threats will be their overlapping full-backs down the flanks, with Stuttgart’s Florian Klein particularly adept at exploiting space in behind the defence (see examples below).
Consequently, to curb this threat, Ireland will need two wingers who are alert both on and off the ball.
Unlike most of the other players in the squad contending for a place on the wing, Horgan has had plenty of experience playing against top sides in Europe and games in which Dundalk have had to cede the majority of possession, and the former Cork City player has proven he can defend well in these situations.
Against Zenit – a side who have reached the Champions League round of 16 in three of the past five seasons and who have 18 internationals in their squad, the 24-year-old Galway native showed his prowess both going forward and tracking back (examples below).
This kind of experience is vital and something which makes Horgan stand out among Ireland’s options to play wide.
The PFAI Player of the Year is also capable of operating on both the right and left wing, despite invariably occupying the latter role, and so McClean’s preference for playing left as well would not necessarily be an issue.
Martin O’Neill has been branded a ‘conservative’ coach since taking the job, but during his Ireland reign, he has been adventurous enough to play Robbie Brady at left-back, in addition to handing Shane Duffy a competitive debut against Italy at Euro 2016.
Picking Horgan this evening would be a similarly big gamble, but one that would not be without rationale.
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