King Forced To Replace Duo For German Clash
REPUBLIC of Ireland U21 Head Coach Noel King has been forced to make two changes to his squad for Monday’s UEFA U21 Championships qualifying round clash with Germany in Sligo.
QPR’s Frankie Sutherland and Bristol City defender Derrick Williams both suffered injuries on club duty in midweek and King has drafted in Derry City’s Barry McNamee and Aston Villa’s Graham Burke.
“It’s unfortunate to lose Frankie and Derrick but Barry and Graham have been in with us before and are very good players whose versatility is important,” said King.
Ireland host the Germans in the Showgrounds, Sligo, on Monday, September 9 (7.45pm) and began their campaign with a 4-1 victory over the Faroe Islands in Toftir last month. Matt Doherty scored twice in that game with Samir Carruthers and Aiden O’Brien also finding the net.
“We’ll look to maintain the focus we had in the Faroes. I couldn’t argue with commitment and quality we produced in that game and I’ve no doubt we will do the same again,” said King.
“The opposition is obviously different but I’m sure the boys can’t wait. These are the games we love to play in and the lads have shown in performances against the likes of Italy and Holland recently that they can perform against top class opponents.
“I have somebody looking at Germany in their game against the Faroe Islands tonight and will also be looking at the DVD of that game before we play them.
“I’ve seen the Germans on tape before and they’ve a new manager in Horst Hrubesch so it’ll be interesting to see what they’re like but the value of the players at their disposal is something extraordinary – they have players who’ve played 30 plus games in Bundesliga football so it represents a great challenge.
“The support of the Sligo crowd will be very important so I’m hoping we will have another full house at the Showgrounds.”
Republic of Ireland U21 squad:
Aaron McCarey Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
Seán McDermott Sandnes Ulf FC
Matt Doherty Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
Michael Harriman QPR FC – on-loan to Gillingham FC
Barry McNamee Derry City FC
Shane Duffy Everton FC
Seán McGinty Sheffield Utd FC
Anthony O’Connor Blackburn Rovers FC
Connor Smith Watford FC
Joe Shaughnessy Aberdeen FC
Callum Reilly Birmingham City FC
Anthony Forde Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
Seán Murray Watford FC
Samir Carruthers Aston Villa FC – on-loan to MK Dons
Jack Grealish Aston Villa FC
Graham Burke Aston Villa FC – on-loan to Shrewsbury Town
Charles Dunne Blackpool FC – on-loan to Wycombe Wanderers FC
Aiden O’Brien Millwall FC
Image via FootballRepublic.ie
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