Editing Jack Charlton (section)

==Managerial career==

===Middlesbrough===
Charlton was offered the job as manager of [[Football League Second Division|Second Division]] club [[Middlesbrough F.C.|Middlesbrough]] on his 38th birthday in 1973. He declined to be interviewed for the position and instead handed the club a list of responsibilities he expected to take, which, if agreed to, would give him total control of the running of the club.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=136}}</ref> He refused a contract and would never sign a contract throughout his managerial career.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=137}}</ref> He took a salary of £10,000 a year despite the chairman being willing to pay a lot more; his only stipulations were a gentleman's agreement that he would not be sacked, assurances that he would have no interference from the board in team affairs, and three days off a week for fishing and shooting.<ref>{{cite book |last=Phillips |first=Neil |title=Doctor To The World Champions: My Autobiography |year=2010 |publisher=Trafford |isbn=978-1-4251-6429-4 |page=493 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hky42XmoBZcC&q=%22Jack+Charlton%22&pg=PA489}}</ref> He decided first to repaint [[Ayresome Park]] and to publicise the upcoming league campaign to generate higher attendance figures.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=142}}</ref>

Charlton took advice from Celtic manager [[Jock Stein]], who allowed him to sign right-sided midfielder [[Bobby Murdoch]] on a free transfer.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=139}}</ref> Besides Murdoch the club already had ten players who Charlton moulded into a championship-winning side: [[Jim Platt]] (goalkeeper), [[John Craggs (footballer)|John Craggs]] (right-back), [[Stuart Boam]] and [[Willie Maddren]] (centre-backs), [[Frank Spraggon]] (left-back), [[David Armstrong (footballer, born 1954)|David Armstrong]] (left midfield), [[Graeme Souness]] (central midfield), [[Alan Foggon]] (attacking midfield), [[John Hickton]] and [[David Mills (footballer)|David Mills]] (forwards). Some of these players were already settled at the club and in their positions, whilst Charlton had to work with some of the other players. He moved Souness from left midfield to central midfield to compensate for his lack of pace and coached him to play the ball forward rather than side to side as was his instinct.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=144}}</ref> Foggon was played in a new role which Charlton created to break the offside trap set by opposition defenders, an extremely fast player he was instructed to run behind defenders and latch on to the long ball to find himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=146}}</ref>

Middlesbrough secured promotion with seven games still to play of the [[1973–74 Football League|1973–74]] season, and Charlton told his team to settle for a point away at [[Luton Town F.C.|Luton Town]] so they could win the title at home but his players ignored his instruction to concede a goal and the title was secured with a 1–0 win at [[Kenilworth Road]].<ref name=":4">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=147}}</ref> They won the title by a 15-point margin (at the time only two points were awarded for a win); in contrast promoted [[Carlisle United F.C.|Carlisle United]] (3rd) finished only 15 points ahead of [[Crystal Palace F.C.|Crystal Palace]] (20th), who were relegated. He was named Manager of the Year, the first time that a manager outside of the top-flight had been given such an honour.<ref name="page 148">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=148}}</ref>

He continued to manage and change every aspect of the club. He decided to disassemble the club's scouting network to instead focus on local talent in [[Northumberland]] and [[County Durham|Durham]].<ref name="page 150">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=150}}</ref> His only major new signing of the [[1974–75 Football League|1974–75]] season was [[Terry Cooper (footballer, born 1944)|Terry Cooper]], a former Leeds United teammate.<ref name="page 150"/> They adapted well to the [[Football League First Division|First Division]], finishing in seventh place, but would have finished fourth and qualified for Europe had [[Derby County F.C.|Derby County]] not scored a last-second goal against them on the last day of the season.<ref name="page 151">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=151}}</ref>

Building for the [[1975–76 Football League|1975–76]] campaign, he signed [[Phil Boersma]] from [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]] to replace Murdoch, but Boersma never settled at the club and was frequently injured.<ref name="page 151"/> They finished in 13th place, and went on to win the [[Anglo-Scottish Cup]] with a 1–0 win over [[Fulham F.C.|Fulham]].<ref name="page 151"/> They also reached the semi-finals of the [[Football League Cup|League Cup]], and took a 1–0 lead over [[Manchester City F.C.|Manchester City]] into the second leg at [[Maine Road]], where they were soundly beaten 4–0.<ref name="page 151"/> Teams had begun to learn how to combat Charlton's attack strategy. They left their centre-backs outside of the penalty box to neutralise Foggon's threat.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=152}}</ref> Despite the team's steady progress, the club's board voted to sack Charlton in July 1976 after becoming increasingly concerned that he was overstepping his authority in negotiating business deals on behalf of the club and choosing the club's strip.<ref name="stripp">{{cite book |last=Phillips |first=Neil |title=Doctor To The World Champions: My Autobiography |year=2010 |publisher=Trafford |isbn=978-1-4251-6429-4 |pages=560–1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hky42XmoBZcC&q=%22Jack+Charlton%22&pg=PA489}}</ref> The club chairman overruled the decision and Charlton remained in charge.<ref name="stripp"/>

With Hickton coming to the end of his career, Charlton tried to sign [[David Cross (footballer, born 1950)|David Cross]] as a replacement but refused to go above £80,000, and Cross instead went to [[West Ham United F.C.|West Ham United]] for £120,000.<ref name="page 153">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=153}}</ref> Middlesbrough finished the [[1976–77 Football League|1976–77]] campaign in 12th place, and Charlton left the club at the end of the season on the belief that four years was an optimum time with one group of players and that he had reached his peak with them – he later regretted his decision. He stated that he could have led the club to a league title if he had stayed and signed two more top-quality players.<ref name="page 153"/> He applied for the job of [[England national football team|England]] manager after [[Don Revie]] quit the role and [[Brian Clough]] was ruled out by [[the Football Association]]. Charlton did not receive a reply to his application and vowed never to apply for another job again, instead waiting until he was approached.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=156}}</ref>

===Sheffield Wednesday===
In October 1977, he replaced [[Len Ashurst]] as manager at [[Sheffield Wednesday F.C.|Sheffield Wednesday]], who were then bottom of the [[Football League Third Division|Third Division]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=160}}</ref> He appointed as his assistant [[Maurice Setters]], who had experience managing at that level but had effectively ruled himself out of another management job after taking [[Doncaster Rovers F.C.|Doncaster Rovers]] to court for unfair dismissal.<ref name="page 161">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=161}}</ref> The two agreed that while the standard of football in the division was low, the work rates were high. So, the best way to make progress would be to play long balls into the opposition penalty area while recruiting big defenders to avoid being caught by opposition teams with similar tactics.<ref name="page 161"/> He took the "Owls" to mid-table safety with a 14th-place finish in the [[1977–78 Football League|1977–78]] season, though they did suffer embarrassment by being knocked out of the [[FA Cup]] by [[Northern Premier League]] side [[Wigan Athletic F.C.|Wigan Athletic]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=162}}</ref>

His priority in the summer of 1978 was to find a target man for [[Tommy Tynan]] to play alongside. He found it in {{height|ft=6|in=2}} [[Andrew McCulloch (footballer)|Andrew McCulloch]], who arrived from [[Brentford F.C.|Brentford]] for a £70,000 fee.<ref name="page 164">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=164}}</ref> He signed [[Terry Curran]] as a winger but eventually moved him up front to play alongside McCulloch.<ref name="page 164"/> He sold goalkeeper [[Chris Turner (footballer, born 1958)|Chris Turner]] to [[Sunderland A.F.C.|Sunderland]] and replaced him with the bigger [[Bob Bolder]].<ref name="page 164"/> He further raised the average height of the team by signing uncompromising centre-half [[Mick Pickering]] from [[Southampton F.C.|Southampton]].<ref name="page 164"/> The team failed to advance in the league, finishing the [[1978–79 Football League|1978–79]] season again in 14th spot. They did make their mark on the FA Cup in the Third Round by taking [[1979 FA Cup Final|eventual winners]] [[Arsenal F.C.|Arsenal]] to four replays before they eventually succumbed to a 2–0 defeat.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=166}}</ref>

Charlton's major acquisition for the [[1979–80 Football League|1979–80]] campaign was signing [[Yugoslavia national football team|Yugoslavia]] international midfielder [[Ante Miročević]] for a £200,0000 fee from [[FK Budućnost Podgorica]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=167}}</ref> Miročević proved unable to handle the British winter but otherwise added flair to the team in fairer weather.<ref name="page 168">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=168}}</ref> Wednesday went on to secure promotion with a third-place finish, and Curran finished as the division's top-scorer.<ref name=197980Table>{{cite web|title=League Division Three end of season table for 1979–80 season|url=https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/31-may-1980/|publisher=11v11|access-date=11 July 2020}}</ref>

As the [[1980–81 Football League|1980–81]] season came around Wednesday had young talent such as [[Mark Smith (footballer, born 1960)|Mark Smith]], [[Kevin Taylor (English footballer)|Kevin Taylor]], [[Peter Shirtliff]] and [[Mel Sterland]] breaking into the first team.<ref name="page 168"/> The club were comfortable in the [[Football League Second Division|Second Division]], finishing in tenth position.<ref>{{cite web|title=League Division Two end of season table for 1980-81 season|url=https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-two/31-may-1981/|publisher=11v11|access-date=11 July 2020}}</ref>

Wednesday pushed for promotion in the [[1981–82 Football League|1981–82]] season, but it ended just one place and one point outside the promotion places and would have been promoted under the old two points for a win system that was replaced by the three points for a win system at the beginning of the campaign.<ref name="page 169">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=169}}</ref>

In building for the [[1982–83 Sheffield Wednesday F.C. season|1982–83]] campaign, Charlton signed experienced defender [[Mick Lyons (English footballer)|Mick Lyons]] from [[Everton F.C.|Everton]], and by Christmas Wednesday were top of the table.<ref name="page 169"/> The club had a limited squad, and successful cup runs took their toll, as did injuries to McCulloch and [[Brian Hornsby]] as they drifted down to sixth place by the close of the season.<ref name="page 169"/> They reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing 2–1 to [[Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.|Brighton & Hove Albion]] at [[Arsenal Stadium|Highbury]] with key defender [[Ian Bailey (footballer)|Ian Bailey]] out with a broken leg sustained the previous week. Charlton announced his departure from [[Hillsborough Stadium|Hillsborough]] in May 1983 despite pleas from the directors for him to stay.<ref name="page 170">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=170}}</ref>

In March 1984, [[Malcolm Allison]] left [[Middlesbrough F.C.|Middlesbrough]] and Charlton agreed to manage the club until the end of the [[1983–84 Football League|1983–84]] to help steer the club away from the Second Division relegation zone.<ref name="page 171">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=171}}</ref> He was unpaid except for expenses and only took the job as a favour to his friend Mike McCullagh, who was the club's chairman.<ref name="page 171"/> Middlesbrough ended the season in 17th place, seven points clear of the relegation zone.<ref>{{cite web|title=League Division Two end of season table for 1983-84 season|url=https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-two/31-may-1984/|publisher=11v11|access-date=11 July 2020}}</ref>

===Newcastle United===
Charlton was appointed manager of [[Newcastle United F.C.|Newcastle United]] in June 1984 after being persuaded to take the job by [[Jackie Milburn]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=176}}</ref> [[Arthur Cox (footballer)|Arthur Cox]] had left the club after leading the "Magpies" to the [[Football League First Division|First Division]] and key player [[Kevin Keegan]] announced his retirement.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=177}}</ref> His first action was to release [[Terry McDermott]] from his contract, who refused to agree to Charlton's offer of a new contract.<ref name="page 178">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=178}}</ref> He had little money to spend in preparation for the [[1984–85 Newcastle United F.C. season|1984–85]] season, though he did have young talents in [[Chris Waddle]] and [[Peter Beardsley]].<ref name="page 178"/> He signed midfielder [[Gary Megson]] and big striker [[George Reilly]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=179}}</ref> The "Toon" finished safely in 14th place, and a teenage [[Paul Gascoigne]] was on the verge of breaking into the first team.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=183}}</ref>

Charlton resigned at the end of pre-season training for the [[1985–86 Newcastle United F.C. season|1985–86]] campaign after fans at [[St James' Park]] started calling for his dismissal after the club failed to secure the signing of [[Eric Gates]], who instead joined [[Lawrie McMenemy]] at [[Sunderland A.F.C.|Sunderland]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=185}}</ref>

===Republic of Ireland===
Charlton was approached by the [[Football Association of Ireland|FAI]] to manage the [[Republic of Ireland national football team|Republic of Ireland]] in December 1985.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=195}}</ref> His appointment was controversial in Ireland at the time due to his status as an Englishman.<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/mar/29/finding-jack-charlton-review-how-an-englishman-became-an-irish-hero | title=Finding Jack Charlton review – how an Englishman became an Irish hero | work=The Guardian | first=Stuart | last=Jeffries | date=29 March 2021 |access-date=19 July 2024}}</ref> His first game in charge was on 26 March 1986 against [[Wales national football team|Wales]] at [[Lansdowne Road]] which ended in a 1–0 defeat.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.soccerscene.ie/ss_gen/matchdetails.php?id=222&level=sssenior|title=Republic of Ireland 0 Wales 1|date=26 March 1986|work=SoccerScene.ie|access-date=16 December 2009}}</ref> 
In May 1986, Ireland won the [[Iceland Triangular Tournament]] at [[Laugardalsvöllur]], in [[Iceland]]'s capital of [[Reykjavík]], with a 2–1 victory over [[Iceland national football team|Iceland]] and a 1–0 win over [[Czechoslovakia national football team|Czechoslovakia]].<ref name=":5">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=207}}</ref> By this time, Charlton had developed his tactics, which were based on the traditional British 4–4–2 system, as opposed to the continental approach of using deep-lying midfielders, as he noted that most of the Ireland international players plied their trade in England.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=205}}</ref> Crucially, he instructed all members of his team to pressure opposition players and, in particular, force ball-playing defenders into mistakes.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=206}}</ref>

====Euro 1988====
[[UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying|Qualification]] for [[UEFA Euro 1988|Euro 1988]] in West Germany meant winning [[UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying Group 7|a group]] containing Belgium, [[Bulgaria national football team|Bulgaria]], [[Luxembourg national football team|Luxembourg]] and [[Scotland national football team|Scotland]]. The campaign opened with Belgium at the [[King Baudouin Stadium|Heysel Stadium]], and though Ireland contained danger man [[Nico Claesen]], they had to settle for a 2–2 draw after conceding twice from corner-kicks; [[Frank Stapleton]] and [[Liam Brady]] scored the goals for Ireland.<ref name= "page 214">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=214}}</ref> They then dominated Scotland at [[Lansdowne Road]], but failed to find the net and instead drew 0–0.<ref name="page 214"/> In the return fixture at [[Hampden Park]] [[Mark Lawrenson]] scored an early goal and another clean sheet won the Irish their first win of qualification.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton |1996|p=215}}</ref> The campaign faltered with a 2–1 loss in Bulgaria, though Charlton was furious with referee [[Carlos Silva Valente]] as he felt that both of [[Lachezar Tanev]]'s goals should not have counted as [[Nasko Sirakov]] allegedly pushed [[Mick McCarthy]] in the build-up to the first and he felt that Sirakov was outside the penalty box when he was fouled by [[Kevin Moran (footballer)|Kevin Moran]] – Valente instead gave a penalty.<ref name="page 216">{{harvnb|Charlton |1996 |p=216}}</ref> They picked up another point after a 0–0 draw with Belgium in [[Dublin]].<ref name="page 216"/> Despite not particularly impressing, Ireland then picked up four points with two victories over Luxembourg.<ref name="page 217">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=217}}</ref> They ended the campaign with a 2–0 home win over Bulgaria, [[Paul McGrath (footballer)|Paul McGrath]] and Kevin Moran the scorers, though Liam Brady (an ever-present in qualification) picked up a two-match suspension after lashing out late in the game after being repeatedly kicked by Bulgarian midfielder [[Ayan Sadakov]].<ref name="page 217"/><ref>{{cite news |title=Shattered Dreams and Bones in Bulgar Battles|date= 25 March 2009 |work=Irish Independent |location = Dublin |url=https://www.independent.ie/sport/columnists/vincent-hogan/shattered-dreams-and-bones-in-bulgar-battles-26523674.html |publisher=independent.ie|first = Vincent|last = Hogan}}</ref> Despite the victory the Irish had to rely on a favour from the Scots in order to qualify, who duly obliged with a 1–0 victory, courtesy of [[Gary Mackay]] – a substitute earning his first cap – in [[Sofia]] to keep Bulgaria one point behind Ireland in the table.<ref name="page 217"/>

{{Quote box|quote="...&nbsp;every player we brought into the squad considered himself Irish&nbsp;... Had it not been for the economic circumstances which forced their parents or grandparents to emigrate, they would have been born and reared in Ireland. Should they now be victimized and denied their heritage because of the whims of journalists? I think not."|source=— Charlton responded to critics who noted the high percentage of Ireland internationals during his time as manager who had been born and raised in Britain.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=221}}</ref>|width=30%|align=right}}

The build up to Euro 1988 in [[West Germany]] was far from ideal, as key player Mark Lawrenson was forced to retire after injuring his Achilles tendon, Liam Brady picked up a serious knee injury and [[Mark Kelly (footballer, born 1969)|Mark Kelly]] was also injured.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=224}}</ref> The first match of the tournament was against [[England national football team|England]] at the [[MHPArena|Neckarstadion]], and Charlton reasoned that the threat posed by English wingers [[Chris Waddle]] and [[John Barnes (footballer)|John Barnes]] could be nullified by allowing the English defence to feel comfortable on the ball without allowing them a pass; this made the build-up play slow and containable.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=228}}</ref> His game-plan worked and Ireland claimed a 1–0 win after [[Ray Houghton]] secured an early lead.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=229}}</ref> He then compensated for a series of injuries by playing [[Ronnie Whelan]] and [[Kevin Sheedy (Irish footballer)|Kevin Sheedy]] in central midfield, and was rewarded with a great performance and a good point in a 1–1 draw with the [[Soviet Union national football team|Soviet Union]] at the [[Niedersachsenstadion]], Whelan scoring the goal.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=230}}</ref> To qualify they only needed a point against the [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]] at the [[Parkstadion]], and Charlton devised a time-wasting plan with goalkeeper [[Packie Bonner]] that he was forced to abandon after referee [[Horst Brummeier]] was less than impressed.<ref name="page 231">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=231}}</ref> Ireland lost the game 1–0 after [[Wim Kieft]] scored an 82nd-minute goal.<ref name="page 231"/> England and Ireland were eliminated while Netherlands and the Soviet Union qualified – both teams would go on to contest [[UEFA Euro 1988 Final|the final]], which the Dutch won 2–0.<ref>{{cite web |title=UEFA Euro 1988 |url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/history/seasons/1988/matches/ |website=[[UEFA]] |access-date=11 July 2020 |language=en}}</ref>

====1990 World Cup====
[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)|Qualification]] for the [[1990 FIFA World Cup|1990 World Cup]] in Italy required Charlton to mastermind a top two finish in [[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 6|a group]] consisting of [[Spain men's national football team|Spain]], [[Hungary national football team|Hungary]], [[Northern Ireland national football team|Northern Ireland]] and [[Malta national football team|Malta]]. The campaign started on hostile ground at [[Belfast]]'s [[Windsor Park]], and he had stand-in goalkeeper [[Gerry Peyton]] to thank for the point gained from a goalless draw with Northern Ireland.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=236}}</ref> A series of injuries left only a skeleton squad to face Spain at the [[Estadio Benito Villamarín]], leaving a recall for defender [[David O'Leary]], and Ireland were beaten 2–0.<ref name="page 237">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=237}}</ref> They then left [[Budapest]]'s [[Ferenc Puskás Stadium|Népstadion]] with a point from another goalless draw. However, they were criticised for not taking all two points after dominating the game.<ref name="page 237"/> The next four fixtures would be played at Lansdowne Road, and all four games ended in victory. First, they beat Spain 1–0 after an own goal from [[Míchel (footballer, born 1963)|Míchel]], then they overcame Malta and Hungary with 2–0 wins before beating Northern Ireland 3–0.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=240}}</ref> Qualification for Ireland's first World Cup was assured at the [[Ta' Qali National Stadium]] after [[John Aldridge]] scored both goals in another 2–0 victory.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=244}}</ref>

Ireland's [[1990 FIFA World Cup Group F|group]] opponents in [[Italy|Italia]] '90 were England, [[Egypt national football team|Egypt]] and the Netherlands. Charlton felt that England's four-man midfield of Waddle, Barnes, [[Bryan Robson]] and [[Paul Gascoigne]] did not offer enough protection to the back four, and he was proved correct when Kevin Sheedy cancelled out [[Gary Lineker]]'s opener to secure a 1–1 draw in the group opener at the [[Stadio Sant'Elia]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=252}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8sBUAAAAIBAJ&pg=4981,3490001&dq=jack+charlton&hl=en |title=Lethal Dose of Sheedy |date=13 June 1990 |page=26 |work=New Straits Times |access-date=18 June 2013}}</ref> A poor performance against a negative Egyptian side at the [[Stadio Renzo Barbera|Stadio La Favorita]] meant that neither side scored a goal in a dour draw.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=253}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=x8G803Bi31IC&dat=19900618&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |title=Egypt Block Irish Hustle |date=18 June 1990 |page=32 |work=New Straits Times |access-date=18 June 2013}}</ref> They ended the group with a 1–1 draw with the Dutch, [[Niall Quinn]] cancelling out [[Ruud Gullit]]'s opener in the 71st minute, after which both sides settled for a stalemate as a draw meant that both qualified ahead of Egypt.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=254}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=x8G803Bi31IC&dat=19900623&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |title=Ireland 1 Holland 1 |date=23 June 1990 |page=22 |work=New Straits Times |access-date=18 June 2013}}</ref> Ireland then defeated [[Romania national football team|Romania]] in the Second Round match at the [[Stadio Luigi Ferraris]] which went to [[Penalty shoot-out (association football)|penalties]] after a 0–0 draw, before the whole team had a meeting with [[Pope John Paul II]] at the [[Vatican City|Vatican]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=x8G803Bi31IC&dat=19900626&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |title=Irish in Last Eight |date=26 June 1990 |page=24 |work=New Straits Times |access-date=18 June 2013}}</ref>

One of the most iconic moments from Ireland's unexpected success in ''[[1990 FIFA World Cup|Italia 90]]'', (the 1990 FIFA World Cup), took place at [[Walkinstown]] roundabout, Dublin on 25 June 1990 after Ireland beat Romania on penalties.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Dennehy|first=Mary|date=2020-07-29|title=Iconic scenes at Walkinstown roundabout to remember Jack|url=https://www.echo.ie/iconic-scenes-at-walkinstown-roundabout-to-remember-jack/|access-date=2022-09-05|website=[[The Echo (Dublin newspaper)|The Echo]]|language=en}}</ref> Crowds emerged from the nearby public houses of the Kestrel and Cherry Tree and invaded the roundabout to celebrate the win. Amateur footage of the joyous scenes became synonymous with Ireland's success that year and epitomised the sense of hope which prevailed throughout the country, especially after a decade of economic recession.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Barry|first=Stephen|date=2020-07-21|title=Italia '90 scenes at Walkinstown Roundabout as Ireland pays tribute to Jack Charlton|url=https://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer/arid-40019342.html|access-date=2022-09-05|website=[[The Irish Examiner]]|language=en}}</ref> After Charlton died in 2020, fans gathered at the roundabout to recreate the moment and pay their respects to the past manager.<ref name = gatav>{{Cite web|last=Gataveckaite|first=Gabija|date=2020-07-21|title=Italia 90 scenes revisited as Ireland fans pay tribute to Jack Charlton at Walkinstown Roundabout|url=https://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/international-soccer/italia-90-scenes-revisited-as-ireland-fans-pay-tribute-to-jack-charlton-at-walkinstown-roundabout-39385298.html|access-date=2022-09-05|website=[[The Irish Independent]]|language=en}}</ref>

Ireland eventually went out to the host country, [[Italy national football team|Italy]], 1–0 in the quarter-finals at the [[Stadio Olimpico]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/01/sports/world-cup-90-italy-reaches-semifinals.html |title=Italy Reaches Semifinals |date=1 July 1990 |work=The New York Times |access-date=18 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/irelandfootball/story/0,,586461,00.html |title=Schillaci ends Irish odyssey |date=1 July 1990 |work=Observer |access-date=19 June 2013}}</ref> A lapse of concentration meant that Italy's [[Salvatore Schillaci]] scored on 38 minutes. Ireland failed to build up enough chances to find the equalising goal.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=261}}</ref> After returning to [[Dublin]], over 500,000 people turned out to welcome the team back.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=262}}</ref>

====Euro 1992 qualifying====
Qualification for [[UEFA Euro 1992|Euro 1992]] in Sweden left Ireland facing [[UEFA Euro 1992 qualifying Group 7|a group]] of England, [[Poland national football team|Poland]] and [[Turkey national football team|Turkey]]. They opened in style with a 5–0 home win over the Turks and then drew 1–1 home and away with the English; Ireland were the better team than England in both encounters, and Charlton said that they "twice let them off the hook" after Houghton missed easy chances in both games.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=269}}</ref> A 0–0 draw at home with Poland followed, and they were then leading 3–1 in the return fixture in [[Poznań]] but conceded two late goals to end the match at 3–3.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=270}}</ref> Ireland beat Turkey 3–1 in [[Istanbul]] despite the intimidating atmosphere of the [[BJK İnönü Stadium|İnönü Stadium]], but were denied a place in the tournament as England scored a late equalizing goal in Poland to secure the point that would take them above Ireland in the group.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=271}}</ref>

====1994 World Cup====
To [[1994 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)|qualify]] for the [[1994 FIFA World Cup|1994 World Cup]] in the US, Ireland had to finish first or second in a [[1994 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA – Group 3)|seven-team group]] of Spain, [[UEFA Euro 1992|European champions]] [[Denmark national football team|Denmark]], Northern Ireland, [[Lithuania national football team|Lithuania]], [[Latvia national football team|Latvia]], and [[Albania national football team|Albania]]. Lithuania, Latvia, and Albania proved to be little threat to the Irish, and both home and away matches against these three teams earned Ireland the maximum of two points. The two most difficult fixtures – Denmark and Spain away – ended in goalless draws. John Aldridge had a goal disallowed for offside against the Spanish which even Spain manager [[Javier Clemente]] said should have stood.<ref name="page 273">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=273}}</ref> Ireland then beat Northern Ireland 3–0 at home before settling for a 1–1 draw with Denmark.<ref name="page 273"/> The qualification campaign was then derailed in the opening 26 minutes of the home tie with Spain as the Spanish took a three-goal lead; the game ended 3–1, with [[John Sheridan (footballer)|John Sheridan]]'s late consolation eventually proving crucial at the end of the campaign.<ref name="page 276">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=276}}</ref> The final game was in Belfast against Northern Ireland during a tense period of [[The Troubles]].<ref name="page 276"/> [[Jimmy Quinn (footballer, born 1959)|Jimmy Quinn]] put Northern Ireland into the lead on 74 minutes, but four minutes later [[Alan McLoughlin]] scored the equalising goal to allow the Republic of Ireland to secure second place in the group due to their superior goals scored tally over Denmark.<ref name="page 278">{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=278}}</ref> When Quinn scored Northern Ireland assistant manager [[Jimmy Nicholl]] shouted "Up yours!" to his counterpart [[Maurice Setters]] (Charlton's assistant); in response to this Charlton approached Northern Ireland manager [[Billy Bingham]] at the final whistle and told him "Up yours too, Billy".<ref name="page 278"/>

In the build up to the World Cup Charlton gave out first caps to [[Gary Kelly (footballer, born 1974)|Gary Kelly]], [[Phil Babb]] and [[Jason McAteer]]; he had difficulty convincing McAteer to join Ireland as he first had to turn down an approach by [[The Football Association|the FA]] to play for the [[England national under-21 football team|England under-21]]s.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=282}}</ref> He scheduled difficult matches before the tournament and Ireland picked up positive results by beating both the Netherlands and [[Germany national football team|Germany]] away from home.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=283}}</ref> Ireland opened [[1994 FIFA World Cup Group E|the group stage]] of the tournament by beating Italy 1–0 at the [[Giants Stadium]], Ray Houghton scoring the winning goal on 11 minutes.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=289}}</ref> They then fell to a 2–1 defeat to [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]] at the [[Camping World Stadium|Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium]], during which Charlton had a pitch-side argument with an official who was preventing substitute John Aldridge (who went on to score the consolation goal) from taking the pitch minutes after his teammate Tommy Coyne had left the pitch and sat down on the bench.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=293}}</ref> For his arguing, Charlton was suspended by [[FIFA]] for the final group game against [[Norway national football team|Norway]], and had to watch from the commentary box as Ireland qualified with a 0–0 draw.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=294}}</ref> They faced the Netherlands in the Round of 16; [[Dennis Bergkamp]] put the Dutch ahead on 11 minutes after [[Marc Overmars]] took advantage of a mistake by [[Terry Phelan]], and [[Wim Jonk]] scored the second and final goal of the game from 30 yards after Packie Bonner fluffed an otherwise routine save.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=295}}</ref> For his achievements Charlton was awarded the [[Freedom of the City of Dublin]] in 1994 by [[Lord Mayor of Dublin|Lord Mayor]] [[Tomás Mac Giolla]], the first Englishman to be given the honour since 1854.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=296}}</ref>

====Euro 1996 qualifying====
Ireland failed to [[UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying|qualify]] for [[UEFA Euro 1996|Euro 1996]] in England, despite a strong start to [[UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying Group 6|the group]], when they won their opening three games, including a 4–0 win against Northern Ireland. The Republic's next game was also against Northern Ireland, although the result was a 1–1 draw. From that point onwards, the Republic stuttered badly as injuries struck down key players [[Roy Keane]], [[Andy Townsend]], John Sheridan and [[Steve Staunton]].<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=299}}</ref> After beating the highly fancied [[Portugal national football team|Portugal]], the Irish then endured an embarrassing 0–0 draw to [[Liechtenstein national football team|Liechtenstein]] (this was Liechtenstein's only point in their ten matches), before losing twice to [[Austria national football team|Austria]], on both occasions by three goals to one. Although they defeated [[Latvia national football team|Latvia]], Ireland needed to beat Portugal in [[Lisbon]] to qualify outright but lost 3–0. They finished second in the group, ahead of Northern Ireland on goal difference, but as the worst performing runners-up they had to win a play-off game at [[Anfield]] against the Netherlands; Ireland lost 2–0 after a brace from [[Patrick Kluivert]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Play-offs – 13/12/1995 – 21:00CET (20:00 local time) – Anfield – Liverpool |url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/match/52312--republic-of-ireland-vs-netherlands/ |access-date=8 January 2014 |publisher=[[UEFA]]}}</ref> Charlton resigned shortly after the game.

{{Blockquote|In my heart of hearts, I knew I'd wrung as much as I could out of the squad I'd got – that some of my older players had given me all they had to give.|Charlton spoke in his autobiography about his decision to retire.<ref>{{harvnb|Charlton|1996|p=298}}</ref>}}