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Defiant Ireland face wary Spain

Wednesday, June 13, 2012 by Garry Doyle & Graham Hunter

Republic of Ireland's Jon Walters and Shay Given sound a defiant note to UEFA.com as they bid to save their Group C hopes against Spain, whose Javi Martínez expects a "difficult match".

Defiant Ireland face wary Spain
Defiant Ireland face wary Spain ©uefa.com 1998-2012. All rights reserved.

Beaten by Croatia in their UEFA EURO 2012 Group C opener, the Republic of Ireland could not have tougher opponents in a match they cannot afford to lose – holders Spain.

However, Jon Walters and Shay Given tell UEFA.com that they remain optimistic, with the striker promising Ireland will "give it a right go" and the goalkeeper taking heart from Italy's success in holding Spain 1-1. As for the defending champions, Javi Martínez knows they face a difficult time against a team that are "very strong physically" with "impressive" fans.

To watch our full video preview of Thursday's game in Gdansk, click on the player above.

© 1998-2024 UEFA. All rights reserved. Last updated: Friday, October 26, 2012

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