Aldridge on his Athlone roots, Diogo Jota and football changes
John Aldridge’s family connections with Athlone enabled the prolific striker to represent the Republic of Ireland on 69 occasions. And speaking to the Westmeath Independent this week, he spoke of his ancestry and gave his thoughts on a number of topical football issues.
Aldridge spoke proudly of his time playing for the Republic of Ireland, the former Liverpool striker netting 19 times for his country.
Aldridge, who was a key player for manager Jack Charlton during the 1988 European Championships and both the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, qualified to play for the Republic of Ireland under the ancestry rule, his Midlands roots proving pivotal to his rewarding international career.
“My mother’s family, the McNamaras all came from Athlone, while the Mills and the Keanes were from Galway,” Aldridge said when asked about his links to this region.
During his time as Tranmere Rovers manager, Aldridge brought the team over to Athlone for friendlies against Athlone Town and he was also in the local area when the FAI festival of football came to Westmeath back in 2014.
Aldridge is hopeful that the Republic of Ireland can qualify for next year’s World Cup - which will be held in the USA, Canada and Mexico - with supporters anxious for the return of the memorable scenes that were a prominent feature during Charlton’s managerial reign.
“Firstly, our new manager Heimir Hallgrimsson has to get a solid base in the team. Stop conceding goals and work from there. Under Jack we played a different style of game to many international teams.
"We have some gifted players at the moment; we just don’t need to overplay in certain areas and the manager has to find a style that will suit the players we have,” Aldridge said.
The former Tranmere Rovers manager acknowledged that the national team is in much need of a goalscoring striker which would help Ireland's cause to qualify for next year’s World Cup.
“We haven’t had a prolific striker with the national team since Robbie Keane, they are hard to come by. Troy Parrott and Evan Ferguson are still very young and learning about the game, I was still learning about the game at 30! We are all desperate to get Jack’s days back, so hopefully that’ll be the case soon again,” Aldridge said.
With recent investment in Athlone Town from US businessman Nick Giannotti, foreign ownership of clubs is a prevalent theme within football globally, but Aldridge believes that such developments have not added to the competitive side of the game.
“Initially it was Roman Abramovich who came in to Chelsea and it seemed to go from there. Football is more of a business now. Yes, top players are coming to the Premier League but has foreign investment improved the game competitively? I don’t think so,” Aldridge said.
As the community of Liverpool comes to terms with the tragic recent death of star player Diogo Jota, Aldridge said that his death remains a huge shock to the Merseyside giants.
“As each day goes by the shock eases, but it is not easy. Liverpool Football Club has gone through the mill with the Heysel Stadium tragedy, Hillsborough and now this tragic situation. All you can do is pay your respects to Diogo’s wife and three children and both of his parents,” Aldridge said.
Aldridge believes that Jota would want his teammates to drive on and achieve more success in his memory. “It will not be easy for the players when they return to action, but Diogo would want the team to carry on with his spirit in mind and hopefully achieve further success for the football club,” Aldridge stated.
John Aldridge was speaking to the Westmeath Independent as a brand ambassador for BetBrain