REPUBLIC OF IRELAND PLAYERS SET FOR EURO 2016 QUALIFICATION BONUS.


 


The Republic of Ireland players that gained qualification for the upcoming EURO 2016 finals in France have come to terms with the FAI on a bonus package.
The deal was agreed following negotiations between the FAI and the players' representatives, Ciarán Medlar.
He heads up the Sports Unit at BDO Ireland, which advises many of Ireland’s leading professional sportspeople on all aspects of their financial and commercial planning.
John O’Shea and Robbie Keane acted on behalf of the Ireland players. The package includes payments to players who helped Ireland to qualify for EURO 2016, as well as a bonus structure for future successes at the Championships this summer.
John Delaney, FAI CEO, said: "I want to thank Robbie Keane and John O'Shea, as captain and vice captain, who acted on behalf of the players, and to all of the players themselves for bringing this matter to a successful and speedy conclusion, and for their professionalism throughout this short process.
“We can all now look forward to EURO 2016 together as Ireland get set for what will be a great occasion for the team and for our millions of supporters around the world.”
Robbie Keane today thanked the FAI for bringing the matter to a successful outcome.
"I would like to thank the Football Association of Ireland and John Delaney on behalf of all of the players," he said.
“We are pleased to have finalised this agreement quickly and cordially with the FAI through our representative, Ciaran Medlar.”
“The players are all very focused on preparing the tournament. We are delighted to have reached the EURO 2016 finals and really looking forward to an exciting group. It will be a tremendous honour to represent the country in France.”

Kasper Schmeichel saves earn Leicester a point against Manchester City 

 

It is probably a measure of how far Leicester City have come that they might reflect on a goalless draw against such an expensively assembled cast of Premier League all-stars with a tinge of disappointment. Yet Claudio Ranieri’s team can still take encouragement from the way they matched a side that has won the title in two out of the past three seasons and Jamie Vardy could probably be excused on this one occasion that he was unable to take the chance that might have sent them back to the top of the division.
Vardy’s first-half miss was incongruous to how the rest of his season has gone but he still played his part in another display that demonstrated why Leicester have reached the midway point of the current campaign in the leading pack and are denied top spot only by goal difference. This, however, was a night when Manchester City reminded themselves it was possible to keep out the opposition without Vincent Kompany.
Manuel Pellegrini’s team are still short of their most exhilarating peaks but, defensively, this was an improved performance given the way they have been so susceptible without their captain recently.

They have conceded more goals than Crystal Palace and Stoke this season but Joe Hart was protected well, for the most part, against a Leicester side that is discovering there are different pressures at the top and did not maybe play with the same freedom as earlier in the campaign.
One of the joys of Leicester’s rise has been their willingness to take the game to their opponents from the first whistle. Here, though, there was a measure of conservatism, too.
Ranieri’s team began the game as though acutely aware that their opponents can be devastating on the counterattack. The high sense of adventure that has been Leicester’s trademark was missing during the opening exchanges and, for the first time in a long time, it was possible to detect a few nerves among the crowd.

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Leicester’s defeat at Liverpool on Boxing Day was their first since September and there was a sense early on that their momentum may have been broken or at least that it was beginning to fray around the edges.
Passes were misplaced or long, hopeful punts were aimed in the direction of Vardy, rather than the quick, penetrative football that had swamped other sides.
They were indebted to Kasper Schmeichel’s goalkeeping during those moments in the first half when the movement and speed of their opponents left them vulnerable.
Raheem Sterling had been moved from the wing to take up a more central position. He was an elusive opponent while, in the wide positions, Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva showed their refinement on the ball. With Sergio Agüero lurking in dangerous places, that attacking quartet always gave Pellegrini’s team a menacing edge.
All the same Leicester still created the two most inviting chances of the first half. The home side took a while to work up a head of steam but a flurry of pressure at the end of that period invigorated the crowd and reminded everyone of their ability to trouble defences.
Marc Albrighton had their first opportunity but could not apply the finishing touch after a wonderful left-wing delivery from Christian Fuchs and, shortly afterwards, the ball was at Vardy’s feet in the position where he loves to be, bearing down on goal with the time to draw back his foot and pick his spot.
Fernandinho had lost the ball in front of his own penalty area and Vardy, played in by Danny Drinkwater, has been so prolific this season it came almost as a jolt that he could not punish that carelessness. His shot flew over the crossbar and the crowd went into half-time wondering how costly that miss might prove.

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Vardy’s directness and raw pace, coupled with his absolute determination to influence the course of the match, still made him a dangerous player and Leicester began the second half with a new impetus.
Drinkwater might not attract the same publicity as Vardy or Mahrez but his intelligent midfield play has been a prominent factor in Leicester’s success and he had another fine game. N’Golo Kanté showed again why he has been one of the outstanding buys this season and when the home side were put under pressure Wes Morgan showed his capabilities alongside Robert Huth in the centre of defence. Morgan is another understated member of Ranieri’s team but Leicester’s captain had managed to subdue Agüero’s threat by the time the Argentinian was substituted on 64 minutes.
Agüero did not look too happy when he came off but that might have been more to do with the fact he felt he had been fouled inside the penalty area in the previous attack.
That was the second penalty appeal the referee, Craig Pawson, turned down, having decided that Danny Simpson’s handball did not deserve a spot-kick. Silva was taken off 10 minutes later and Pellegrini must feel his team will have a much more potent threat once these two players are capable of finishing matches.
Mahrez had his best spell of the match in the last 20 minutes, including a wonderful turn to flummox Kevin De Bruyne, and Leicester were still pressing for a winner in the final exchanges.

Former Newcastle United goalkeeper Pavel Srnicek dies aged 47 

 

The former Newcastle United, Sheffield Wednesday and West Ham goalkeeper Pavel Srnicek has died at the age of 47 his agent has confirmed.
Srnicek suffered a cardiac arrest while out running in his native Czech Republic on 20 December and was left in a critical condition. He had been in an induced coma since then but a decision was taken to switch off his life support machine.


His agent, Steve Wraith, said in a statement: “It is with deep sadness that I have to announce the passing of former Newcastle United player Pavel Srnicek.”
Srnicek had been in the north-east this month to launch his autobiography before returning to his family home for Christmas. Newcastle supporters could be heard chanting his name during their Boxing Day match with Everton.
Signed by Jim Smith, Srnicek played for Newcastle between 1991 and 1998, helping them win promotion to the top flight during the 1992-93 season. He returned to the club on a season-long deal in September 2006 as cover for the injured Shay Given.
He also had a couple of seasons at Sheffield Wednesday, made a handful of appearances for Portsmouth and West Ham, along with spells in Italy and Portugal.
His release from Newcastle in 2007 brought an end to his playing career but he remained in the game and was working as goalkeeping coach at Sparta Prague when he collapsed.


The statement continued: “Pavel suffered a cardiac arrest before the Christmas period in his home country and had been in an induced coma in hospital with his close family around his bedside.
“Despite the best medical attention the final brain scans on Monday showed irreversible damage and the decision had to be taken to switch off the life support machine. Pav passed away on the afternoon of Tuesday, December 29 2015 with his family by his side.
“Pavel, the goalkeeping coach at Sparta Prague, had recently been on a whistle-stop tour of Tyneside to promote his autobiography, ‘Pavel Is A Geordie’, something that he was very proud of.
“My final conversation with him was about getting the entertainers team back together one more time for charity next year as it will be 20 years since that Newcastle team almost won the Premier League. We will make that happen and celebrate this great man’s life together.”

 Srnicek played 49 times for the Czech Republic and was a member of the squad that lost to Germany in the 1996 European Championship final.