Michael Duffy has been a standout for the Candystripes this season and Tiernan Lynch believes he should be in the Ireland squad
Derry City manager Tiernan Lynch believes Michael Duffy is “100 percent” the finest player in the League of Ireland this season.
The boss also believes the 31-year-old Candystripes sensation merits recognition for his exceptional talent with a long-awaited Ireland call-up.
Duffy, who represented Northern Ireland at Under-21 level and the Republic at Under-18s, earned a senior Northern Ireland squad place under Michael O’Neill in 2016 whilst at Celtic.
He never earned a cap at senior level and in 2018, during a brilliant period at Dundalk, he expressed his ambition to represent Ireland.
With encouragement from then manager Martin O’Neill, he began the declaration process – but administrative delays meant he couldn’t respond to Stephen Kenny’s invitation in late-2020, reports the Irish Mirror.
FIFA eventually approved his international switch in February 2021, but no subsequent invitation materialised.
Lynch maintains it’s not too late to finally offer Duffy the acknowledgement he merits, something he declared back in 2018 that he had his “heart set on.”
Duffy proved crucial again for the Candystripes in Sunday’s 2-1 victory over Shamrock Rovers – a result that brought them nearer to clinching second spot in the Premier Division.
When Lynch was questioned whether Duffy merited Player of the Year honours, he responded: “In my opinion, yeah, 100 percent.
“I made a comment last week, I think Michael Duffy, along with one or two others, definitely should be in for a shout to be involved in the Irish squad. I stand by that.
“I think there is a huge amount of talent in this league. I think it’s a tremendous league, full of good players, full of good managers, and I think it probably needs a little more recognition on the national stage.”
When questioned why it hadn’t materialised yet for Duffy, he responded: “I don’t know, I’ve never asked the question. I’m probably biased on that and what I’ve seen of him.
“I’m not going to be critical of any manager, I know how difficult it is and I know how difficult a job it must be for a national team manager.
“But working with Michael every day, I think there’s more in him.”
Lynch continued: “I think he’s been excellent. When you talk about Michael Duffy you always get a smile on your face, because of how infectious the kid is.
“He is a top player, a top person. Every day is exactly the same to him – matchday, first day of training, last day of training, he’s first on the pitch, he’s last off the pitch, and he has had a massive, massive impact.
“It’s been great to see him back to where he belongs.”
The same sentiment applies to Derry City, as they edge closer to second place following Sunday’s victory over Rovers.
Lynch assumed control last winter after the Candystripes secured fourth position in the Premier Division and suffered defeat to Drogheda United in the FAI Cup final. Clinching a spot back in Europe was the immediate priority – and Sunday’s victory achieved exactly that.
However, there’s much more on the horizon, according to their boss, who declared: “It’s not a successful season, but a progressive season.
“A successful season is when you have got silverware in the cabinet, and I think that’s how we have to behave at this football club and that has to be our mentality at this football club.
“We have to be pushing to win league titles and we have to be pushing to win the cup, to be playing group stages in Europe.
“That’s why we came into this club and that’s what we want to achieve.
“I came into this with my eyes wide open. It’s definitely a massive club and probably a bigger club than I thought, if truth be told.
“The potential of this club is absolutely and utterly phenomenal. It’s now my job from a football perspective to make sure we go and grab that with both hands and make sure we give them something to cheer about.
“European football is massive. I don’t think anybody needs me to tell them that this is where we need to be.
“But the season is not over yet, we have another massive game, and our job and mentality has to be to try and finish second, and build on that next season.”
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