Robbie Keane admits playing for Republic of Ireland comes as a welcome ‘release’ from his Tottenham frustrations.
The striker, who captains his national side, is expected to play a key role in Friday’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Russia in Dublin.
However, he enters the clash on the back of limited playing time at Spurs this season, having fallen behind fellow strikers Jermain Defoe, Peter Crouch and Roman Pavlyuchenko in manager Harry Redknapp’s pecking order.
The arrival of Holland World Cup star Rafael van der Vaart at White Hart Lane has restricted Keane’s playing opportunities further, and the 30-year-old admits life at Spurs is hard due to the lack of regular football.
Difficult
“When you are not playing games, it’s very difficult,” Keane, who has started only one competitive game this season, told the London Evening Standard.
“I love playing football and find it hard when I’m not playing, but you have to get your head down and work hard in training, which I always do.
“I keep myself fit. You only get sharpness through playing games, and I have not played a lot lately, but the one thing is that I am fresh.
“For Ireland, I have been involved in every game. The other players look sharp and I know they look forward to coming over and playing.
“When you are not involved at club level, it is a release to come over here and play games, so it’s something you look forward to.”
