Matt Doherty has been left out of the Republic of Ireland squad to face Finland and England in the Nations League later this month despite fresh concerns around Séamus Coleman’s fitness.
Doherty was widely criticised for his performances against England and Greece in September, prompting Irish manager Heimir Hallgrímsson to exclude the 32-year-old for the October trips to Helsinki and Athens when Dara O’Shea started at right back.
Coleman’s latest hamstring issue, however, could see the Ireland captain miss out on Hallgrímsson’s 23-man panel that welcomes Finland to the Aviva Stadium next Thursday before Lee Carsley’s final match as interim England manager at Wembley on November 17th.
Veteran defender Shane Duffy returns, instead of Andrew Omobamidele, who has a patella problem, while Ireland under-21s captain Andrew Moran and in-form Stoke City striker Tom Cannon are also recalled.
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Moran, who is having an impressive season on loan to Stoke from Brighton, could come straight into the starting line-up in a creative central role previously filled by Finn Azaz and Troy Parrott.
“Andy is a young player who has a good engine in him,” said Hallgrímsson. “He is good at pressing, and is quick getting back into shape. He has been impressive for Stoke.
“We all expect [Moran] to become a national team player in the future but we didn’t select him because we wanted the under-21s to qualify for their finals but now is the time to bring him in. We are excited to have him on board.”
Aberdeen’s Jamie McGrath is using the international window to undergo a vascular operation while Will Smallbone (hamstring), Robbie Brady (ankle, eight weeks recovery) and Chiedozie Ogbene (Achilles operation, eight to nine months) are unavailable.
Festy Ebosele replaced Ogbene to good effect in the victory over Finland and defeat to Greece.
“Festy is really exciting, he can do things that just blow your mind. Speed. In the last games he played right back in the first and left back in the second, when he started as a winger. He is really good going forward.”
Callum O’Dowda is covering Brady’s absence at left back, a position Liam Scales could also fill, with Hallgrímsson stating that Southampton’s Ryan Manning is being “monitored”.
Doherty’s exclusion will come as a surprise to the 47-times capped Dubliner, who said that Hallgrímsson told him he was only dropped last month so other potential right backs could be tested before next year’s World Cup qualification campaign.
“That is exactly what he said to me,” Doherty told the the42.ie. “I just haven’t been playing that much so I don’t really have an argument with things at the moment.
“But obviously I should be in the squad, even if I’m not playing or not going to play I should still obviously be in there,” he said. “But yeah, I’m patient. I wasn’t happy, but I got to spend time with my kids. I do expect to be in the next squad.
“I said to him ‘yeah, I felt disrespected in the last camp’ because in the second game [Greece] he was playing a centre back at right back [Omobamidele] ahead of me. And that’s not possible. So, we spoke about it and we’re fine so I should see them in November.
“It would have to take a lot to hurt my feelings. I’ve got thick skin and that. At the end of the day, if he doesn’t want to pick me it’s his decision. I’ve played zero minutes in the last four games. What could I say to that?”
Doherty now has zero minutes for Wolves in the last six Premier League outings, but Coleman has not played a game, for Everton or Ireland, since the 2-0 loss to England on September 7th.
“We want to explore other players in that position,” Hallgrímsson explained. “We know exactly what [Doherty] can give us so we don’t need to see him or test him.”
The Ireland manager did not read the recent Doherty interview.
“To be honest I didn’t read it, I just heard about it. All players should feel they should be playing. To have that confidence. I would be unhappy if a player didn’t think he deserved to play.”
Will Doherty play for Ireland again?
“I hope so.”
Republic of Ireland squad – Finland & England
Goalkeepers: Caoimhín Kelleher (Liverpool), Mark Travers (Bournemouth), Max O’Leary (Bristol City)
Defenders: Séamus Coleman (Everton), Dara O’Shea (Ipswich Town), Nathan Collins (Brentford), Shane Duffy (Norwich City), Mark McGuinness (Luton Town), Liam Scales (Celtic), Callum O’Dowda (Cardiff City).
Midfielders: Josh Cullen (Burnley), Jason Knight (Bristol City), Jayson Molumby (West Brom), Finn Azaz (Middlesbrough), Andy Moran (Stoke City, on loan from Brighton).
Forwards: Adam Idah (Celtic), Evan Ferguson (Brighton), Tom Cannon (Stoke City, on loan from Leicester City), Troy Parrott (AZ Alkmaar), Festy Ebosele (Watford, on loan from Udinese), Kasey McAteer (Leicester City), Sammie Szmodics (Ipswich Town), Mikey Johnston (West Brom).
Fixtures – Uefa Nations League
Thursday, November 14th: Ireland v Finland, Aviva Stadium, 7.45
Sunday, November 17th: England v Ireland, Wembley Stadium, 5.0
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