So the scene is familiar for hopeful Republic of Ireland fans looking to make the trip to the EURO 2012 finals - a major showdown with a footballing power - and a miraculous performance needed to restore any chance of that happening. The vision of the manager, Giovanni Trapattoni, is one dimensional and there is little hope he can find a new formula for the encounter with Russia on Tuesday in Moscow.
The current style of play certainly makes the Jack Charlton era look stylish and slick where teams such as England, Russia or Italy struggled with the 996 World Cup winner's simple plan of puttng opponents under constant pressure. It certainly saved money on DVD's and endless tactical team meetings and on the field brought major results.
Undoubtedly Charlton was a man with luck on his side, not unlike his brother Bobby, who was fortuistoons not only to survive the Munich air disaster, but also win the world cup, the European Cup and numerous Leagues titles with Manchester United. For Jack it was also an era Leeds United became a dominant force in Europaan soccer - and unfortiuante to meet Bayern Munich in the European Cup Final in 1973 - when the Germans were in their pomp.
For the record some of the current players have tasted the magic of World Cups, as a decade ago in Korea and Japan Ireland reached the knock out stages under Mick McCarthy, losing to Spain on penalties. Luck too played it's part with some vital goals in the dying minutes of the group game against Germany assuring passage into the second stage.
As we know from the play off on Paris in November 2009, Ireland have lost that run of luck in more recent years, and the failure to reach South Africa in 2010 was a high price to pay for a what was a brave performance in the Stade de France by Robbie Keane's team.
It is no wonder that the spirit of that Paris night is being recalled on the even of the match against group leaders, Russia, in the hope that sheer talent and skill can overide the footballing straight jacket that Il Trap prescribes for all his teams. A throwback to the successful formula first iniuiated at Juventus in the lates 1960's.
It was a stint at Bayern Munich that first saw Giovanni Trapattoni work outside his native Italy, a place where he had enjoyed lengthy managerial careers at Juventus and Internazionale, collecting trophies for fun it seemed. There were 8 Serie A titles, 2 European Cup, 2 Cup Winners Cup, 2 UEFA Cup, as well as multiple Coppa Italia trophies. The majority of the haul came during his ten years at Juve, with the balance during his five years at Inter. The reputation of Il Trap was such that Bayern called on him the first time in 1994 after he was fired from Cagliari.
Although ultimately successful in Germany, Trapattoni's time in Bavaria was not altogether happy and during both his spells the Italian struggled to master the club’s squad, and the language. This week with the Carling Nations Cup final upon us, there is a touch of deja-vu of this period in Trapattoni’s career, made all the more infamous by a YouTube clip of him at a Bayern Munich press conference .
In an emotional outburst in March 1998 Trapattoni delivered his thoughts in mangled German, for which he was lampooned forever afterwards given it became whatever the equivalent of “viral” was in the 1990's. His incorrect German syntax meant he described his players as "empty bottles” and went on to highlight his problems with one player in particular, Thomas Strunz.
Years later in 2000 Trapattoni was speaking to the UEFA coaching journal, the Technician, and gave his recollections of problems he faced at Munich at that time, as well as the experiences of working in a different country.
"I was able, through my experience," said Trapattoni, "to understand what a foreign player goes through - problems of communication, lifestyle, etc.”
"As an Italian coach in Germany, I was trying to change a mind frame - a congenital condition. I met with resistance, because you don't change a mentality in two or three months. I wanted them to get accustomed to thinking tactically, developing the play and seeking options.
"I had to let them play their way and gradually blend in my tactics. The players said: 'We always trained like this, played like this, and we usually won.' I said: 'Europe is moving forward - we need to take off blinkers and advance.' After my first year, they began to change a little, but it was a cultural clash. I tried to get into their reality and to offer something. In Germany, they follow a fixed plan. In Italy, we are more flexible."
Although these days Trapattoni says he is flexible, in reality he does not stray far from the classical Italian tradition of man-marking and the belief in counter-attack. Indeed, Helenio Herrera, the inventor of the defensive system catenaccio, was one of his key influences. And it clearly shows every time the Republoc of Ireland take to the field.
Except for that one night in Paris, which seemed like a year in any other place, as the team seemingly ditched their formation and attacked the spaces in search of the much needed goal - which they deserved to get.
It remains to be seen whether luck will return for this Italian manager - born on St Patrick's Day - when the Republic of Ireland play Russia on the artificial surface at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on Tuesday night.
Republic of Ireland team to play Russia - Given, Kelly, Dunne, O'Dea, Ward, Duff, Whelan, Andrews, McGeady, Keane, Doyle
