James McCarthy needs to change his attitude on the pitch if he is to help this Ireland team, according to John Giles.
Giles accepts that McCarthy's injury record of late may mean that McCarthy is not up to full match sharpness yet, but there were aspects to his first-half performance against Bulgaria that rang alarm bells.
"I don't think that he is consciously taking the easy options, but every time he is on the ball, he is pointing to where it should go. He was doing this in the first half and I've seen him do it before.
"I don't like to see that, because you should be doing something to get the bloomin' ball yourself! Never mind pointing to where someone should be putting it. You should be looking forward it, turning on it and dictating it.
"I have never seen a player dictate a game before by pointing where someone else should be putting it."
James McCarthy
Giles believes McCarthy could potentially be the link between defence and attack that Ireland sorely missed against Bulgaria in the first half.
"He was in some very, very good positions there to receive it because he is the one that is going to connect back to front. But you don't do that by pointing to where people should be playing the ball.
"Get the ball on it, turn on it and dictate things yourself.
"I don't want to be too hard on him, I know he is coming back from injury. But you can't do that."
Giles pinpointed a creative spark that was advancing his side's cause in Sofia.
"[Callum] O'Dowda was our best man, he has been the most threatening, we have had a good few chances through him."
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