Dara O’Shea: “It was difficult psychologically; not much was said to me.”

After joining Burnley in the summer from West Bromwich Albion, O’Shea has made eleven appearances on the field. However, during his four Premier League games there, manager Vincent Kompany did not employ him.

A Premier League football player and a full-fledged Irish international, all at the age of 24. Although Dara O’Shea is undoubtedly headed in the right direction, there have been some obstacles on her route for the Dubliner.

Though the Republic of Ireland’s dreams of qualifying for Euro 2024 are long gone, competition among Shane Duffy, Nathan Collins, and other players for spots in the back four is still fierce. Andrew Omobamidele and Liam Scales are two of the others battling for spots at the moment.

Club level has presented comparable difficulties. After joining Burnley in the summer from West Bromwich Albion, O’Shea has made eleven appearances on the field. However, during his four Premier League games there, manager Vincent Kompany did not employ him.

It was mentally taxing. To be honest, not many words were said to me. I’m not sure why, but I believe that’s just how he manages things. I had to come to terms with that and put in a lot of effort to get back into the picture. I’ve been playing regularly for the past few games and I’m having a great time.

But that was a difficult time. It’s not simple. When you’re wounded, you can sort of understand that you won’t be able to play; however, it can be difficult to accept when you’re ready and try your hardest on the training field and you’re not chosen.

It’s difficult to watch the boys go out there when you’ve worked so hard all week to try and earn that spot. However, it motivates you to keep going since that opportunity will always present itself; you just need to seize it.

Just four points have been won by Burnley from their first twelve games since their return to the top division, and O’Shea has found it difficult to adjust to a new style of play on a personal level.

This is his first club transition since moving to England, having spent eight years at West Brom. Despite the challenges, he has seized the chance to broaden his horizons and make new friends.

“Most of the time, it’s acceptable, but Vincent Kompany, the manager, expects a lot from you, and you have a lot to learn. Although I had been informed of that before signing, I wasn’t prepared for it to be as it was when I arrived. There’s a young squad there as well.”

“He is making an effort to include everyone in the information; there is a lot of information to process, but we are making progress. He said at the beginning of the season that it would take some time for me to understand, but I am gradually making progress and believe that I am improving as a player.

The attention is on the trip to Amsterdam this weekend, but the list of Irish players who routinely play in the Premier League is still much too limited, which makes O’Shea’s success in Lancashire all the more significant.

To guarantee their spot in Germany come summertime, the Netherlands only need to win one of their last two matches against Gibraltar and Ireland. Even an unexpected victory won’t be enough to prevent the visitors from finishing in fourth place overall in the standings.

It’s highly likely that this will be Kenny’s final competitive game.

With the Aviva friendly against New Zealand early next week, the chapter that began with such optimism and purpose will come to a conclusion.

What then has been the absent piece?

O’Shea remarked, “That’s a good question, I’m not too sure.” “It has come down to razor thin margins and we have been unlucky in many situations.” When all is said and done, that’s football. As a squad, we are learning together; we are a fairly new bunch.

“International football is very different from club football in that it lasts for a shorter period of time and involves new players learning the style of play.” There are tiny margins and a lot of luck involved, so we can partially attribute it to that.