Matt Doherty has left his pink-haired barbeque buddy Antoine Griezmann green with envy going into Monday’s feast with France.
Griezmann was licking his wounds yesterday after being controversially snubbed for the French captaincy in the wake of Hugo Lloris’ post-World Cup retirement.
That contest was seen as a straight shootout between the Atletico Madrid ace and Paris St Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe.
But Mbappe, 24, has got the nod from Didier Deschamps, who has sided with youth over experience and there is fresh uncertainty over Griezmann’s long-term future with the team.
Media reports in France claim it was the 32-year-old’s ‘dream’ to lead Les Blues to the European Championships next year, and that his nose is now out of joint.
As for Doherty, he couldn’t be happier.
Not that his new clubmate has been shafted, but that he himself has been entrusted with the surprise responsibility of being a captain.
Doherty will tonight lead Ireland out for the first time when they host Latvia in a warm-up friendly for the France clash.
But asked if he was aware of the unrest in the French squad, caused by the captaincy issue, Doherty said last night: “I heard that, yeah.”
And the Atletico newcomer continued “Griezmann is a big leader at the club. He was obviously there before and came back. He’s got a great relationship with everybody.
“I was only there for two weeks and we had a team barbeque at his house and he looked after everybody.
“He’s got the respect of everybody in the squad, he leads them on the pitch and off the pitch.
“We know what kind of world-class player he is, he’s been doing it for years and years. For sure he's going to be someone that we’ll have to keep our eye on for 90 minutes.
“I was doing a diary for Tottenham during the World Cup so I was actually watching all of his games.
“I’ve seen pretty much everything he does, and he does that on a regular basis for the club as well. He's just a world-class player, simple as that.”
But Doherty - and Ireland boss Stephen Kenny - have downplayed the significance of any Griezmann-Mbappe spat coming to Dublin.
Doherty said: “He would be a good captain for France, but I don’t care if he is or not, it's nothing to do with me.”
And Kenny claimed to be unaware of tensions in the French squad, insisting their sheer array of talent was enough to keep him occupied.
“They have an embarrassment of riches, and obviously have some players who have retired,” said the Ireland manager.
“But when you look at their squad, it’s all Real Madrid, Barcelona, PSG, Bayern Munich - essentially all of their players are at top European clubs.
“They've been the most consistent team in the world over the last eight years, getting to two World Cup finals, winning one and losing the other one on penalties.”
Doherty’s shock switch to La Liga was the most leftfield move of the January window's deadline day dealings.
What was initially meant to be a loan from Tottenham turned into a short-term but permanent move until the end of this season.
But with just one appearance so far, Doherty has found games hard to come and that's laregly why he starts against Latvia tonight.
The fact he is wearing the armband suggests that regular skipper Seamus Coleman and stand-in John Egan are both being rested with Monday in mind.
Doherty is also expected to start against France, but first he will enjoy the moment of leading the team out for the first time.
He said: “It’s obviously a pleasure, a great honour. I’ve never done it before so when Stephen told me, I was a bit surprised, I didn’t expect it.
“I’ve to thank him for doing that, I know he believes in me a lot. Even though I’ve not been playing that well, he’s always kept in contact.
“I guess he knows that when I’ve played, I’ve never let him down. That will be the same case again, and hopefully I can do him proud.”
While this international window is an opportunity for Atletico boss Diego Simeone to have a closer look at Doherty, it’s also a chance for Doherty to put himself out there.
His deal expires in a couple of months and the Dubliner knows it will be hard to nail down a longer deal if he’s not in the team to impress.
Doherty said: “My Dad once told me, it doesn’t matter where you are, there’s always someone watching.
“I’m not scared of taking leaps or taking challenges or making myself uncomfortable.
“It doesn’t matter what country it is, we’ll see in the summer where I end up but I wouldn’t be scared to go anywhere.
“But I’m training all the time and when you’re playing with top players all the time that keeps you sharp.
“For me it’s not an issue, especially with the game tonight to lead into it. My brain will be sharp enough to cope with anything.”
