HOW DIFFERENT THESE summers have been for Robbie Brady.
Five years ago, he was a national hero.
His header against Italy to reach the knockout stages of Euro 2016 is a goal that will remain in lore. The celebrations which followed were deemed worth of Reeling in the Years.
The closed roof on the Stade Pierre-Mauroy made sure everything stayed in. The smells, the sweat, the tears and the roars. Nothing could escape when Brady rose to meet Wes Hoolahan’s cross.
He hugged and kissed some of his brothers who were among the travelling support. At home in north Dublin, his younger sister was interviewed on RTÉ about her brilliant big brother.
Ever since that moment in northern France – and his penalty against France in the last 16 should not be forgotten either – those Euros have been a constant reference point for Brady’s career, and the glimpse it provided at what he might be able to achieve.
When Robbie Keane subsequently retired, it was Brady who asked to take on the No.10 shirt. He was primed to become the creative talisman.
A transfer from Norwich City to Burnley the following January for a then club record in the region of £13 million made him a Premier League player again. On his full debut against Chelsea at Turf Moor he curled in a free kick to top corner for good measure.
That was January 2017, in December of that year he ruptured the patella tendon in his knee when he shaped to shoot and collided with Harry Maguire.
His career was put on hold for over a year.
Since then the battle has been with his body. A raft of injuries – ankle, groin, calf, hamstring and thigh – meaning he has always been chasing his tail. He must have felt as if he was going around in circles when he suffered an Achilles problem in April.
The timing could not have been worse, his Burnley contract was nearing its end and as he prepared for another stint of rehabilitation they confirmed it would not be renewed.
It is why, this summer, five years on from Lille and what he described as an “outer body experience”, the 29-year-old has been back in Dublin living in the present, and with the help of FAI staff staying as sharp as possible while the hunt for a club goes on.
With pre-season well underway in Britain and Covid-19 making a serious impact on budgets, options are tightening.
“I’m a little in the dark myself in terms of who is going where,” Ireland manager Stephen Kenny said earlier today at an Intersport Elverys FAI Summer Soccer Schools event in Templeogue. “Movement has been slow generally, maybe due to the whole financial environment from Covid-19. There are a lot of players who are expected to move but a knock-on effect determines whether a player can move or not.
“I still expect a lot of movement between now and the start of the season. The Championship is starting on August 7 which is only a couple of weeks away. There are a considerable number of players who will possibly be moving clubs and there’s a few without clubs. Not every player knows exactly where they’re going. Clubs have a big say in that, some of them are loan moves so that’s where that is.
“Robbie [Brady] was just very unfortunate with that Achilles injury,” Kenny continued. “He had been home as well in that period and doing a lot of training with Damien Doyle (the FAI’s head of athletic performance) here in Dublin.
“Danny Miller, our physio, has been to see him to make sure his rehab is going well. Damien has been taking him for real intensive fitness work. I’m sure Robbie will have options. He’s just weighing them up to make the right decision for himself.”
With Ireland’s quick-fire hat-trick of World Cup qualifiers in early September (Portugal-Azerbaijan-Serbia), Kenny is hoping Brady will be available.
“It will depend on a lot of factors; getting proper pre-season training, getting match-time. He hasn’t played for a long time.
“He has a great versatility. For three games in six days, we’ll need our squad and he has the ability to impact the game. You’d want him in it if we could, if he was anywhere near the level. It depends on where he can get to.”
James McCarthy is another, although he seemed content to let his Crystal Palace deal runs its course.
“With James, I’m not sure what his next move is. Again, he is a quality player,” Kenny continued. “Two seasons ago, he played a high number of games, which was great for him. He had issues this season and we’ll have to wait to see how that goes.
“They (Robbie and James) are immensely talented players who have already played in the European Championships. They’ve both had their fair share of injuries. It’s been a tough year for them.”
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