Finn Azaz sends message as former Aston Villa prospect refuses to let boo-boys spoil big night

Finn Azaz was handed a first competitive start for Republic of Ireland in Finland on Thursday evening and played his part in a rousing fightback which saw Heimir Hallgrimsson's side...

Finn Azaz says he will ignore the outside noise as he attempts to make his way in international football. The 24-year-old former Aston Villa midfielder was handed a first competitive start for Republic of Ireland in Finland on Thursday.

A product of the West Brom academy before joining Villa in 2021, Azaz played his part in a rousing fightback by the Irish which saw Heimir Hallgrimsson’s side overturn a 1-0 deficit to secure a 2-1 Nations League win in Helsinki.

Victory went some way towards silencing critics of Hallgrimsson after defeat to England and Greece in his first two fixtures at the helm, but Azaz is just determined to realise the promise he showed at Villa before moving to Middlesbrough in the January transfer window.

He said: “I am going out there to do my job, that’s what I am trained to do, so I try to ignore the outside noise. We all try to do that. That’s how you have to be.

“We do hear criticism but that’s part of the job. You need a strong mentality to ignore the noise and hopefully this win will help us gain even more confidence. We have a lot of belief.”

Azaz's career has developed the hard way after joining Villa only to be shipped out on loan to Newport County and then Plymouth Argyle, before his move to Boro. But the determination he has learned at club level is now serving him well as an international too.

Even in Helsinki, there was a smattering of boos from travelling fans when the half-time whistle sounded, with the visitors trailing 1-0 after Joel Pohjanpalo had pounced upon skipper Nathan Collins’s weak back-pass.

Azaz added: “I didn’t hear any boos at half-time. It was a tough game and a tough first half, but you need to show respect to the opposition. We are a good team. I felt we could push on at half-time and that’s what we tried to do in the second half.

“With Nathan, mistakes happen and we are ready for that. We didn’t need to say anything to him, he’s an experienced player. We just focused on the positives and had that positive energy for the second half.”

Ireland will now head for Athens to face Greece, who backed up their 2-0 win in Dublin last month with a 2-1 victory over England at Wembley, with Azaz again hoping to be involved.

He said: “We will look at the Finland game and build on the positives. We have real belief – and we should have real belief – that we can go there and not feel like an underdog.

“We have a lot of confidence in the squad, it’s just bringing that out on to the pitch, and that’s what we’ll do on Sunday.”

Although Azaz did not play a first-team game during three years with Villa, they were still able to obtain £2.5m from Middlesbrough for his services on the back of close to 100 EFL appearances via those impressive loan spells.

Speaking earlier this year about his move to the Riverside, Azaz said: "I'm still learning the players and learning the style of football, but I'm really enjoying it here, I'm loving it.

"I’d played in multiple positions [on loan] at Plymouth before this move and I’ve spent the last three or four years learning how to play different positions so that I was ready to take an opportunity like the one I’ve been given here.

"Wherever I’m playing, I’ll give my all and try and figure it out to have the best impact. I’m learning the style and keen to keep developing to ensure I can have an impact wherever I’m asked to play.

"There is more to come from me, for sure. I’ll probably always feel that there is because I’m a perfectionist so I’m always demanding more from myself. There is definitely more to come though."

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