‘You walked down the tunnel and saw Franco Baresi, Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Costacurta and Gianfranco Zola. You asked yourself “Have we got a chance?”’ Terry Phelan on Ireland’s World Cup 94 upset

The Republic of Ireland made their World Cup debut in 1990 - and they weren’t just there to make up the numbers.

After pipping the Netherlands - who where the reigning European champions - to a place in the last-16, they defeated Gheorghe Hagi’s Romania on penalties, thanks to David O’Leary’s decisive spot kick.

Hosts Italy were a bridge too far in the quarter-finals, as a goal from Golden Boot winner Toto Schillaci ended their remarkable run.

Phelan on Ireland’s USA 94 tilt

After making such an impact at Italia 90, Jack Charlton’s men were back four years later in the United States, where the narrative gods pit them against the Azzuri in their first Group E match.

This opening clash took place at Giants Stadium in New Jersey - the forerunner of the MetLife Stadium that will host this summer’s World Cup final, and for former Ireland defender Terry Phelan, it proved to be an unforgettable backdrop for Ireland’s latest Italian job.

“There were 75,000 fans inside the stadium, and you thought ‘Wow, is this a dream?’,” Phelan recalls to FourFourTwo.

“Before kick-off, you walked down the tunnel and you had Franco Baresi there, Paolo Maldini, Roberto Donadoni, Daniele Massaro, Alessandro Costacurta and Gianfranco Zola. You thought to yourself ‘Have we got a chance here?’ Why we had a chance though, was that 90 per cent of the stadium were Irish fans.”

Cheered on by that support, Charlton’s men approached the game in a positive state of mind.

“We went out there with no fear. Jack Charlton played a 4-5-1, we saturated the midfield and stopped the ball from getting to Roberto Baggio – I forgot him in that list a minute ago!”

The game was settled early, thanks to an 11th-minute goal that has gone down in Irish folklore.

“Then the ball went to Ray Houghton, and bang. That was a little bit of history,” Phelan adds, after Ireland exacted revenge with a 1-0 victory that provided the springboard for them to again progress from their group and into the knockout stages.

While Ireland would suffer a 2-0 defeat to the Netherlands in the last-16, Phelan does not underestimate his side’s achievement that summer.

“To get out of the group was magical. We were one of the 16 best teams in the world – not bad for the little country of Ireland.”