DESPITE LAST month’s setback against Italy, qualification for the Euros next year is still very much a realistic prospect for the Ireland U21 side.

Jim Crawford’s men face Iceland at Tallaght Stadium on Sunday (kick off: 12.30pm, live on eir Sport), before travelling to play Luxembourg on Wednesday (kick off: 4.30pm, Irish time).

Top spot in the group appears unlikely, with the Italians looking in strong contention to finish first after a hard-fought 2-1 win over Iceland on Thursday.

However, the Boys in Green will come second if they win their remaining two fixtures, and that is expected to be enough to see them through as one of the five best runners-up.

Qualification for a first-ever major tournament would be a fitting end to an excellent campaign for an Irish team in which they have secured some notable results, while also playing an exciting brand of football.

“At U21 level, that’s the biggest competition to play in, so to be the first Ireland team to qualify would be massive,” says winger Zack Elbouzedi. “I think it would give a big boost to the nation to qualify in what’s been a tough year. 

“There are not a lot of times in a football career where you have a chance to make history. It’s a big carrot that we can be the first Irish team ever to qualify for the U21s. If that doesn’t motivate people, then I don’t know what else can. It’s a big driving factor for us.

“Every game is important, but it’s very clear now that we have to win both games, so you’d have to say that these are the most important games of the campaign so far.
The Iceland game is massive, we have to win it. There’s no other way to put it.”

Elbouzedi explains that the possibility of failing to pick up two vital wins is not something he wants to even consider.

“No one is really thinking about that at the moment. If you start letting negative thoughts come into it, then negative results are going to happen. So all we’re thinking about is if we win, we qualify.

“There’s no thinking about losing or drawing. If we won’t qualify off that, then we’ve done our job, but hopefully if we win both games, we’ll still qualify.”

Iceland earned a 1-0 victory over Ireland in the reverse fixture, while players like Adam Idah, Jayson Molumby and Dara O’Shea have been promoted to the senior set-up since Jim Crawford replaced Stephen Kenny in the U21 role.

Nevertheless, the side have been boosted by the inclusion of Troy Parrott in the current squad.

The Tottenham youngster has played just once, an EFL Cup appearance, since his loan move to Millwall at the start of the season.

Injury problems meant he missed last month’s 2-0 loss against the Italians, but as he closes in on full fitness, the Dubliner is expected to play some part in these upcoming games.

Everyone knows he’s scored four goals in five games in this campaign, so he’s a proven goalscorer,” Elbouzedi says. “If he does play and we give him a chance, he’s going to score. So I think every team wants to have that goalscorer.  He just gives more confidence to the group. We have a lot of great players here, he’s just another quality player added to the group.”

The midfielder is also confident Ireland will beat Iceland “if we play to our full potential”.

“The last time we played them, we didn’t play to our maximum. We still probably should have come away with something from the game. They got a peno that probably wasn’t a peno.

“We’ve had two really good chances that, on another day, we score and we win 2-1 or 3-1.”

While Elbouzedi has got plenty of game time for Ireland U21s, playing the 90 minutes the last time out against Italy, the same cannot be said in relation to his time at club level of late.

The 22-year-old has had an interesting career trajectory so far. He started out as a youngster with West Brom and moved to Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the summer of 2017. Yet it proved to be a frustrating, injury-interrupted spell in Scotland, prompting a switch to Waterford last year.

He excelled during his one season in the League of Ireland, as a result earning a move to Lincoln City, where his progress once again has seemingly stalled.

Having made five appearances last season before the pandemic, he has yet to make a single appearance in League One during this campaign.

The club currently sit fourth in the table, just three points off leaders Peterborough, and so manager Michael Appleton appears reluctant to make too many changes to his side as it stands.

Elbouzedi admits it has been “frustrating” and says he has been made aware of what he could be doing better, but wants to focus on Ireland for now.

“I want to play every game and for one reason or another, I’m just not playing. At the moment, that’s slotted away to the back of my mind. When I come away with Ireland, that’s my full focus. 

“In pre-season, I was playing every game and was playing quite well. But for whatever reason, the team is playing really well and is in good form in the league, so there are not many changes going on, but I want to be playing games and that’s what I’m [hoping to do]. But I think for me, it’s about keeping a good attitude and being ready when the chance does come hopefully.”

Going on international duty has allowed Elbouzedi to reunite with Alan Reynolds, his former manager at Waterford, who is now Ireland U21 assistant boss.

He gave me the freedom to play and express myself. When you’re a young player you need to be playing games, it doesn’t really matter what the level is. You need to play games, start finding your way in the game and [the Waterford move] helped me do it. I was playing week in week out, and playing well. That’s how I got myself into the U21s team. So I think if I hadn’t gone to Waterford, I probably wouldn’t be in this team at the moment.”

Despite his lack of recent game time at club level, the Swords native says he has been doing extra work on his fitness to ensure he is in good condition for this international window.

Elbouzedi has also spoken in the past about being approached by Libya, where his father was born, about representing them, but he politely declined and has always been firmly committed to Ireland.

“I just love playing football.” he adds. “I love being away with my country and putting on that green jersey. It just means so much. I love coming away with the team and to be honest, I just cherish every moment with the Irish team, because you never know when it’s going to be your last.”