Duffy's eight-month spell at Celtic four years ago is utterly irrelevant to whether or not he remains in the picture for Ireland in the coming months. It is especially irrelevant when you consider that, after leaving Celtic, he subsequently impressed for Brighton in the PL (playing 18 games and scoring one goal) and Ireland (he played 10 games and scored three goals for Ireland in 2021 - his highest number of games and goals in a calendar year for the national team).
As with any player, what matters is what he does in his next game and the next game and the next game, until he hangs up his boots. To repeatedly raise a disappointing spell at Celtic (of all places) is crazy.
It is worth remembering that Damien Delaney played centre-back in the Premier League until he was 36. Just looking at the current season, Joel Ward at Palace is 34. Zanka at Brentford is 34. Craig Dawson, who put Nathan Collins out of the Wolves team last year, is 34. Experience is a hard-earned asset to have in football and coaches believe in that.
Look at it another way: After being written off by fans last year (again), Duffy played four games for Ireland in late 2023 (captain in some of those) and was two games away from being back in the Premier League next season. Had they pulled it off, this would all be moot.
End Apartheid Now! One Team in Ireland!
The scorn heaped on Duffy here makes me uncomfortable. He's been a dedicated player for Ireland, put in big performances and scored not a few important goals. It feels to me like the discussion around the change of style under Kenny made it acceptable to scoff at Duffy because accepting that he was an important player for us and Kenny was playing against his strengths went against the narrative. So he had to be an irrelevant player, not an important one. He had to be ****. Not just maybe not the best choice of the available centre halves under the circumstances, nor just a decent player going through a rough patch of form, but a has-been who should hang up his boots in shame at what a shambling dinosaur he was. What kind of fans are ye at all?
I think he was just unlucky that the role of a centre back in possession changed at just the wrong time for him. Similar to goalkeeper, what's asked of centre backs at the top level now is completely different to what it still was at most clubs when he was first emerging. He can't play that way - doesn't have the pace or the footballing skills, and for that reason he is unlikely to play in the Premier League again.
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I know you’re probably not going directly at me (maybe you are!) but in my defence, my reservations about Duffy precede SK. His value proposition was always on a knife edge. His battling, aerial ability and goalscoring ability were all valuable assets that were offset by his passing, pace and touch. For me, I’d always have preferred a player with a little more on offer from the second batch. I’d groan frequently watching him give the ball away or pass the ball straight out of touch with an attempted switch. I’d celebrate the goals too obviously and generally love the commitment and dedication he has. You want that as a fan. My questioning of his ability and worth wasnt to be disrespectful of any of that. I guess it’s just preference.Originally Posted by John83
The appointment of Kenny just brought forward the inevitable in terms of his standing in the hierarchy. And, as Eirambler points out, it’s the way the game has gone that’s seen the same story play out with Brighton (after Hughton left), Celtic, Fulham and, at times, Norwich. It’s not unreasonable to conclude that the Championship is his sweet spot and that he’s not really what you want from an international centre back in todays day and age.
To clarify, no, I wasn't speaking about any one poster (or indeed about any group of ye), and I don't have any problem with posters evaluating his weaknesses as you and Eirambler have above. It's the disrespect I've seen towards him too often that sticks in my craw. This has stretched as far as posts that were angry or baffled that he's been selected for a squad, or willing him to retire. That's just way too much.
Duffy being in the squad is a good thing - he has had ups and downs - had some off-field issues early on - came back from a horrific injury when he was a kid - and we don't have a massive amount of experience in the current squad.
Duffy's biggest strengths have always been heading, clearing, blocking - the absolutely vital stuff that is not fashionable for a defender nowadays - but it has never been the case that he can't pass the ball.
That perceived weakness has been exaggerated ever since the Celtic days, when every single mistake was magnified and ridiculed*. The truth is that every defender makes mistakes or passes it wayward in every game. I've seen Nathan Collins and John Egan pass the ball out of play under little pressure. I've seen Ruben Dias do it. Sergio Ramos, one of the greatest defenders of the modern era, had plenty of mistakes in him.
Duffy is not as refined as John Stones, but he simply would not have played so long at an elite level if he couldn't pass the ball. It's why he has 60 caps for Ireland and played in the Premier League / top end of the Championship for so long. It's why Stephen Kenny played him so much. His fellow pros and coaches know it. Back in 2021 Jonathan Walters said: "Shane Duffy has a lot more quality than people have given him credit for down the years. He can hit 70-80 yard diagonal [passes] right onto someone’s foot and he can do those passes." Around the same time, when the narrative was bedding in, Kevin Doyle said: “He is actually good on the ball, I’ve played with him before and I’ve seen him." David Wagner spoke of his "aura" and Cristiano Ronaldo encountered that in Dublin when he was the victim of a Cruyff Turn. I agree with Walters - Duffy doesn't get the credit his quality deserves.
*Incidentally, I think this is when the outrageously negative perception of Duffy, as alluded to by John83 above, became vogue. Given the fact that some folks continue to cite that eight-month Celtic spell during Covid-19 four years later, it clearly stuck.
End Apartheid Now! One Team in Ireland!
If Duffy couldn't pass a ball then Potter would have never played him at Brighton again after his first season. Never saw him as first choice really but rated him enough to do a job when needed.
Which he was the season after the Celtic loan. Was playing really well for Brighton the first half of the season when injuries saw him drop back to the bench during the second half. Believe though in-between both of his injuries he was still starting everyone second game.
Would I want to see Duffy called up though, nope. Think he played himself into early retirement when he decided to get ****ed drunk and drove his car. Would rather see Jake O'Brien integrated into the squad to replace what Duffy would bring.
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