Doyle takes Dim view
Kevin Doyle is one of the few Irishmen who will be disappointed not to see Dimitar Berbatov lining up against his country on Saturday evening.
The Manchester United striker’s absence from the Bulgaria squad with an ankle injury has come as a huge boost to the Republic of Ireland ahead of this weekend’s World Cup qualifying clash between the two nations at Croke Park.
However, while Berbatov’s Reading counterpart acknowledges the dangerman’s absence is good news for the Irish, he admits to a tinge of regret over not being able to play against him.
Doyle said: “He is playing for one of the best clubs in the world and for the last two or three years, he has been unbelievable, not just in goal-scoring, but his all-round play.
“He is a top player and for them to be missing him is a help for us.
“But I would have liked him to be playing, to be honest, because you want to play against the best players and to be able to beat them with their best players and not give them any excuses.”
Ireland head into Saturday’s game level on points with current world champions Italy at the top of Group Eight, and knowing victory over Bulgaria would sent them into battle with Marcello Lippi’s men in Bari next Wednesday brimming with confidence.
There will be no room for complacency as the Bulgarians attempt to claim their first win after draws in their opening three fixtures.
However, Doyle insists victory will be the only objective as Ireland set their sights on a trip to next summer’s finals in South Africa.
The 25-year-old said: “It won’t be easy, but we will be very organised and we will go about it in the right way and try to get the win.
“I don’t think we will be trying to just get a draw, even though that would probably be a good result, we will be trying to get a win.
“We can keep Bulgaria out of the picture if we can get a result.
“It’s a massive game in that sense and if we can get a result against them, then going into the next game, it makes that an even bigger game against Italy.
“It will be an exciting few days.”
Doyle has established himself as manager Giovanni Trapattoni’s number one strike partner for skipper Robbie Keane, and has started all eight senior internationals to date under the Italian.
However, he knows the adventure might only just have begun, and that two positive results over the next week could lead to much bigger things.
He said: “This is a massive week for us. If we were to get two results, it would finish the season nicely and put us in an unbelievable position to try to qualify.”
