Everton club captain and Republic of Ireland defender Seamus Coleman has insisted that he still ‘loves’ playing for his country despite potential concerns of club managers over international football.
The 32-year-old is a seasoned veteran of the Irish setup, having been capped for the Republic of Ireland 56 times since February 2011. Much like his club, he has also captained the Irish team since 2016 following Robbie Keane’s retirement from international duties.
Whilst Coleman has expressed strong patriotic pride at representing Ireland, his club manager Carlo Ancelotti may not share his same enthusiasm – something that Coleman acknowledges. He told The Mirror:
“I understand the managers and their frustrations, and they want their players to be fit and well for the rest of the season. But as players, we really want to play for your country as well.
“People can see it’s a strange time for friendlies with all the fixtures but, as players and I can only speak for myself, I just love playing for my country. To get this opportunity is great even though I also love playing for Everton.
“I’d like to think meeting up with their national teams around Europe and the world have got immense pride because you can’t lose sight of the fact that from five, six or seven years old, that’s all you wanted to do.
“I don’t think it’s a feeling you should get used to, it’s a feeling you should get whenever you pull on the green jersey and I’m sure the England players will be feeling exactly the same as well.
“We want to win every game, that’s just the way it works because we’re professionals, competitors and don’t get me wrong because England are an excellent team and it’s a great test for us.”
Ireland manager Stephen Kenny also defended the role of international duties, claiming: “This is the way of the world at the moment. We are talking about a vaccine being imminent, 90% proof on it according to the headlines in recent days, so hopefully this situation is temporary throughout the world.”
Ireland are in London to take on England at Wembley tonight in a friendly international.
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Ancelotti may not be so keen to see his players jetting off and risking their health and physical fitness playing in friendlies with no significant consequences, especially with an increase of injuries across the Premier League in the early weeks of this truncated season.
Nonetheless, Coleman’s professionalism and loyalty to both club and country is admirable, and there is no reason to fear from a managerial perspective. Coleman is fulfilling his role as a public leader, whilst the Toffees have the likes of Jonjoe Kenny to call upon in the event of injury to the Irish right-back.
Moreover, Coleman is right to see England as a ‘test’; as much as it is a risk, it is also a chance to find good form and hone vital skills in a less pressurised environment than Premier League games, so this could ultimately be to Ancelotti’s benefit.
