European Cup Qualifier
11.10.2011 at 15:00 - Aviva Stadium
Defender Seán St Ledger has expressed the view that the contrasting positions of the Republic of Ireland and Armenia make for a great occasion on Tuesday night at the Aviva Stadium (6.45pm).
The concluding 2012 European Championship qualifier has everything at stake for the second and third placed teams in the group.
Ireland still have an outside chance of edging leaders Russia out for top spot but the more realistic target is to secure a play-off berth.
A draw would suffice for Ireland to attain that goal while it is victory or bust for Armenia.
The eight-game run of Giovanni Trapattonis team without conceding a goal suggests another shutout is probable. But Armenia are the form team in the pool when it comes to goalscoring – hitting the net eleven times in their last three qualifiers.
It augurs well for an exciting evening in Dublin 4 and St Ledger believes Ireland have the necessary traits to preserve their position in the groups top two.
"At the start of this campaign, everything thought it would be us fighting Slovakia for second place behind Russia but Armenia deserves great credit for changing that.
"They are a very good side, sharp and quick with the ball, and I know from when we played them away earlier in the group last year how strong they are on the attack.
"Armenia are the team with all the momentum but hopefully we can stop that on Tuesday.
"We are on a roll ourselves at the moment with the clean sheets. We have got 8 in a row now, so why cannot we go and make it 9, 10 or 11?
"Our approach to this game will be no different. We always go out there believing that no-one is going to score against us and, at the other end, we have attacking players that can cause damage.
"This run we are on is down to hard work. That is not just the back-four but everyone in the team. We prepare for games with a tactics board which says defending starts from the front.
"The manager (Trapattoni) deserves great credit for that. We are all told our jobs and if there is a particular player in the opposition that is dangerous, he will have a word with us on an individual basis beforehand about it."
Trapattoni is expected to name his starting team on Monday afternoon. Doubts surround the fitness of striker Robbie Keane, who is suffering with an adductor muscle strain.
Richard Dunne is available again after sitting out Fridays 2-0 win in Andorra through suspension but Stephen Ward is out having picked out a second booking of the campaign in that victory.
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