Coleman spoke with calmness and authority of the eve of the Republic of Ireland's World Cup play-off
Published March 25, 2026 • Source: bbc.com
By Matt Gault BBC Sport NI senior journalist in Prague
Republic of Ireland stalwart Seamus Coleman says he is confident the squad are not carrying the pain of the country's failed qualifying bids before Thursday's World Cup play-off semi-final against the Czech Republic.
The Irish suffered agonising World Cup play-off defeats by France and Denmark before the 2010 and 2018 tournaments.
However, Coleman believes the majority of the current squad are too young to be affected by those losses and instead feels they are driven by a desire to create special memories for the Irish fans, thousands of whom have travelled to Prague despite not having a ticket for the match (19:45 GMT).
"It's difficult to say if it's fuelling the players, they're all so young," said former captain Coleman.
"Obviously the nation was hurt massively, but in terms of the current group of players I don't think they're dwelling too much on that hurt.
"To be honest, we're just riding the wave off the confidence we've got as a group, which I think this young group deserves off the last two games. We're looking forward to Thursday and what comes after that.
"To see how the nation is feeling now is incredible and we've a duty to make them even happier."
Coleman and Robbie Brady are the only members of the current squad to have represented the Republic of Ireland at a major tournament, having played at Euro 2016.
And while Coleman admits turning out for his country on football's biggest stage would be "amazing", he insists his main motivation is creating more special memories for the Irish fans after November's wins over Portugal and Hungary.
"After the last two games [against Portugal and Hungary], seeing what it did to our country, it was incredible," added Coleman, who declared himself fit despite having not featured for Everton in 2026.
"Even speaking about it now, it was incredible what it did to our country, how it lifted our country, how it lifted our people, how it made people happier and gave them something to get up in the morning and talk about. That is so important.
"As much as us players want to do it for ourselves and for the manager and all the people behind the scenes, we do want to do it for the people of our country as well."
The Republic of Ireland must beat the Czech Republic on Thursday and either Denmark or North Macedonia in Dublin on Tuesday to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 2002.
Their chances of making even a play-off seemed remote after they took one point from the opening three qualifiers, but having salvaged the campaign, Coleman insists the squad will not be overawed by the occasion.
"This group has come through a lot," said Coleman, who played in the Republic of Ireland's Euro 2016 play-off win over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
"I think we're ready for it. It's going to be tough, it's going to be fiery out there, maybe two years ago it would have been a lot for the young lads to take, but I think everyone now has stepped and are prepared for what's to come.
"We absolutely understand it's going to be a tough game for us but it'll be the same for them."