The Celtic Bhoys published a report revisiting James McClean's comments on Martin O'Neill's managerial approach in his autobiography, The Walls. The report says O'Neill managed the Republic of Ireland to the World Cup qualifying playoff final, where they lost to Denmark.
McClean's account in The Walls
McClean wrote about the Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifying playoff campaign in his autobiography, The Walls. Former Ireland winger McClean wrote: "The problem was the new profile of the squad. The Euro 2016 team had an old-school core. It was a team of men."
What McClean said about O'Neill
Former Ireland winger McClean wrote: "Martin wasn't big on tactics. He would say the game hadn't changed as much as people thought. It was still 11 versus 11, and he trusted good footballers to sort problems out on the pitch."
Younger players in the squad
Former Ireland winger McClean wrote: "But we had an influx of mainly Championship players into the group. Younger lads who had come through in an environment where they were heavily coached and had everything mapped out for them. Tactics, tactics, tactics."
Former Ireland winger McClean wrote: "They couldn't understand Martin's way of doing things. It was like: 'What's this? Why aren't we doing more?' They also weren't as capable of handling criticism either."
