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Ex-Owls ace Whelan eyes further success
Glenn Whelan admits he almost has to pinch himself when he looks ahead to participating in a World Cup qualifying campaign.
The Republic of Ireland midfielder was playing his football for a struggling Sheffield Wednesday side in The Championship in January this year when he says his fortunes took an upward turn.
A little more than seven months on from securing a 500,000 move to Stoke, the 24-year-old Dubliner is now a Barclays Premier League player and a senior international.
On Saturday in Mainz, Germany, he is likely to start Ireland's first World Cup qualifier against Georgia as manager Giovanni Trapattoni sets his sights on South Africa 2010.
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Whelan's rise has been little short of meteoric, and his impact on the international stage has taken many by surprise since he was called into Trapattoni's young squad for a summer training camp in Portugal.
Whelan won his first cap in the 1-1 draw with Serbia at Croke Park on May 24, and has also started the friendlies against Colombia and Norway.
He said: "The games in the summer, even though there were one or two players out, there wasn't much expected.
"But I've been in the team for the last few friendlies and now I'm in the squad for the World Cup qualifiers. It's going great so far. The last couple of months have been going well, but it is up to me to keep it going to stay where I am."
Like the rest of his team-mates, Whelan has enjoyed the experience of working with legendary Italian Trapattoni and trying to glean all he can from a man who has a formidable track record.
However, he revealed the manager is not one to over-burden his players with advice.
Whelan said: "He is a quiet man. I think the press might know the teams before we do."
Trapattoni has left his players in no doubt that although South Africa may be two years off, the process of getting there begins in Germany on Saturday, with a tricky trip to Montenegro four days later.
Whelan said: "We will just worry about Saturday's game and try and get the three points there. If we get that, then we will look for three points in the next one."
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Friday 10 February 2012
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