Trapattoni taking aim at 2012

24 May 2010 16:38

Republic of Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni has set his sights on a place in the finals of Euro 2012 after being cruelly denied a trip to the World Cup.

The 71-year-old Italian will send his side into friendly battle with finalists Paraguay and Algeria this week knowing they could have been joining them in South Africa had it not been for their controversial play-off exit at the hands on France in November. However, his focus is already turning to the qualification campaign which gets under way in September.

Having worked with his senior players for the last two days, Trapattoni said: "I have said for the last two years, when you wear this shirt, there is no such thing as a friendly game because it's our pride and the mentality of our country that is important."

He added: "We have to build our mentality. I am not arrogant, but we are sure we have a strong team.

"I spoke with Marco [Tardelli, assistant manager] and we were saying this group [of players] is a great group - they showed us that against Brazil, against Italy and against France.

"They played better than or at the same level as those teams.

"I know the group will be difficult and we will been all our players to be fit, but I have seen many games and I think we can qualify because this group is strong."

Source: PA