DESPITE THE SCALE of the challenge Ireland face tomorrow, there was an odd serenity about their final pre-match press conference.

Perhaps it’s proof of the old idea that you’re only actually calm as soon as all of your worst fears are confirmed.

Ireland, after all, have already badly lost the most winnable game in the group and now face what is arguably the toughest match the country has ever faced.

Because, despite all of that, the mood was extremely relaxed.

Giovanni Trapattoni was even chiding Robbie Keane about the weather in Las Vegas, when asked about whether he’d want the Gdansk pitch watered against Spain.

Behind all of the laughs, though, there was something a bit more knowing in the smiles. For one, Keane and Trapattoni all but confirmed that the captain will start as the lone striker in a 4-4-1-1. It was evident in the simple way they were speaking.

As Keane said at the end when asked about the issue, “we obviously spoke before so we know what’s going on.

“If I do play as a lone striker, it’s something different but something I enjoy too. It’s more playing on the shoulder and trying to get in behind defenders. If the manager does decide, that’s something I’m prepared to do for the team.”

Beyond that, though, the Irish manager wasn’t giving away too much. Unlike the eve of the Croatia game, he refused to name his team.

“I can’t give you the line-up. I have to think. I have an idea. But we can’t always give the opponent the advantage.”

Referring to that Croatia game, Trapattoni insisted that the team had also recovered in every sense.

“I think that, psychologically, we have overcome the defeat against Croatia. Yesterday in training, I saw the same commitment, enthusiasm. We are back to believing ourselves and our quality. Spain is a very technical team. We know all about them.

“It will be very important not to give them much space, particularly in midfield. They are very good at passing, they play the ball very fast.

“I am thinking about the best solution for us. Our objective is to be offensive, to try and win the game but, at the same time, we need also to find a way to help the midfield because sometimes it has suffered in this situation. After training, I can clarify our situation — psychologically and physically.”

One situation does seem clear: as a manager, Trapattoni has never been such an underdog.

“I repeat what I sometimes say. I am proud to be the manager of the Irish players, because the Irish players have heart. We play our football. It’s creative enough but also technical. Spain is more creative but football is not only creative. It is balance and strength, with attitude. There is also luck. In the last game, we were unlucky. The penalty against Robbie was big… I think we have attitude, mentality, commitment, technique.

“I think also we can win. Why not?”

Keane, naturally, echoed his manager

“Listen, we know it’s going to be a tough game. We’re playing against the best team, with the best players in the world, It’s going to be tough. We’re not naive, we’re not daft. Unless we give exactly what we’ve been doing in the last few years – that commitment, desire that Irish players have – they’re going to beat us. Probably everyone in this room has written the script: they’re going to beat us. Certainly, no-one in that dressing room believes it.”

Stagefright

Given the scale of the task ahead, Keane also deflected the notion that Ireland suffered from stagefright against Croatia.

“There’s no way. I wouldn’t say that at all. I just think the timing of all the goals killed us. Just before half-time, just after half-time. All backs against the wall, chasing. As the manager said, we should have got a penalty. That could have easily changed the game. Maybe it was a little lack of concentration or whatever. It was a 10-minute spell that probably lost us the game.”

Trapattoni, meanwhile, says he does not regret naming his team early for Croatia.

“No, no… I already said this. Today, I need to see the training. Sure, I won’t change three, four, five players. You can be assured of that. Maybe one or two.”

The Irish manager did make a prediction for Spain though.

“I think Vicente Del Bosque will play with [Fernando] Torres or Llorente. The first game, it was a very important game. I think Del Bosque knew how to approach it. It was a very tactical game. Del Bosque was hoping to rely on the quality of the players like Xavi, Iniesta, David Silva and Busquets but he could see that Torres was missing. They lacked a figure up top in the second half and I think, in the second game, Del Bosque will play a striker.”

Finally, Trapattoni rejected the notion of – or, at least, the style associated with – having nothing to lose.

“That does not mean we’re not aware of the capability of our opponents. If nothing to lose means everyone just pouring forward and conceding five, this means you’re not aware of the fact of you’re playing against. So a coach needs to know the technical aspects.”

His camp, meanwhile, give the impressing of knowing something else.

Trapattoni delays naming team to face Spain