Giovanni Trapattoni's liking for 4-4-2 has served Ireland well but it has its limitations while Jon Walters could be a green diamond

This article is part of the Guardian's Euro 2012 Experts' Network, a co-operation between 16 of the best media organisations from the countries who have qualified for the finals in Poland and Ukraine. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the runup to the tournament kicking off on 8 June.

Many in the game consider the formation to be outdated now but Giovanni Trapattoni makes no apologies for being slightly old fashioned and he is a great believer in the 4-4-2 that his Ireland team have played in almost every outing since he took the job four years ago.

The Italian's first task was to stop the Irish team leaking goals after a campaign in which the low point had been a 5-2 defeat by Cyprus. And he took everyone he considered to be a serious contender to play for him to Portugal for a training camp and decided there on what tactics were best suited to the available pool of talent.

The upshot was a system that involves a fairly flat back four with two defensive central midfielders, somewhat more attacking wingers and two strikers, one of whom is almost always a bigger player who has to challenge for long, high balls and hold up play.

Trapattoni often talks up the qualities that his players possess but he has at times been fairly frank too about the limitations of the group that he is working with. He believes that by ensuring that everyone knows exactly what is required of them that he can help to ensure that the team amount to more than the sum of their parts.

With this in mind the Italian routinely passes up the opportunity to have players on the bench who can change things during a game, preferring instead to have absolutely like-for-like replacements for those already on the pitch.

The first-choice lineup is pretty well established at this stage. Shay Given is the preferred goalkeeper with John O'Shea and Stephen Ward likely to play as the full-backs. Of the two, the latter tends to push forward more but in Poland they are likely to have their hands full just defending. Richard Dunne, who is strong in the air and a good tackler, is the key player at the heart of the defence, where he is usually partnered by Sean St Ledger. Both go forward for set pieces and get the odd goal.

Glenn Whelan and Keith Andrews are the preferred central-midfield partnership and it is their job to break up the passing moves of opponents and provide protection to the defenders behind them. When they win possession the idea is to get the ball forward quickly or move it wide to Damien Duff or Aiden McGeady.

Duff no longer skips past defenders with the ease he used to during his days with Blackburn and Chelsea and when playing on the right wing he usually has to cut inside rather than race to the line and cross. He remains a vital player for the team, however, working hard to lend a hand in defence then carrying the ball forward and winning a free-kick that relieves the pressure and provides an opportunity for the team to push into the other half.

At his best, Kevin Doyle is highly effective at winning the ball, keeping possession and then bringing others into play but the captain, Robbie Keane, remains the chief goalscoring threat while also covering a lot of ground and often looking to provide a link between midfield and attack.

When things go well the team can make it difficult for opponents to settle on the ball and spring forward quickly when in possession, causing serious problems for defences. But there is a tendency for the players to surrender possession too easily and when the midfield are forced to defend very deep, Ireland's attacking game plan can be reduced to little more than Shay Given or others launching long balls towards isolated and outnumbered strikers.

Who is the player who is going to surprise everyone at the Euros?

The obvious choice given the season he has had would be James McClean, who seems to have found favour with Trapattoni after his initial reluctance to select the winger. But Jon Walters could come off the bench to be an unlikely star – if, that is, someone can become a star by knocking defenders over and goalkeepers into the back of the net.

Who is the player who is going to disappoint the most?

There will be many a shudder when Stephen Ward is placed in an area of discomfort or, indeed, any time the ball goes anywhere near the Wolves full-back. Paul McShane's late burst into the squad should ensure Ward is given a run for his money if McShane can get on to the pitch. Paul Green is worthy of honourable mention.

What is the realistic aim for your team at the Euros and why?

The three points for a win rule scuppers any chance of a repeat of Jack Charlton's why-bother-winning-when-you-can-draw-every-game heroics of Italia 90. A more realistic target for this side is for them to reach the final fixture against Italy with some sort of hope of qualification.

Emmet Malone is the football correspondent at the Irish Times

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