Knight is called up to senior Irish squad for first time
RAMS TEENAGER BROUGHT IN FROM REPUBLIC’S U21S
JASON Knight has been promoted to the Republic of Ireland’s senior squad for their UEFA Nations League match against Finland tomorrow.
The 19-year-old Derby County midfielder is one of five players added to Stephen Kenny’s squad for the game because of injuries and the further loss of five players who have had to go into isolation.
Knight was with the Under-21s in Pisa preparing for Thursday’s European Championship qualifier against Italy but is now to join the senior Irish squad in Dublin before they travel to Finland today for tomorrow’s UEFA Nations League match in Helsinki.
The Dublin-born youngster has been capped by his country at various youth levels but is in with a chance of a first senior cap before he returns to Derby to get ready for Friday’s Championship clash at home to Watford.
It has been a tough few days for the Irish, who were beaten on penalties in a Euro 2020 play-off semifinal in Slovakia on Thursday and held to a goalless draw by Wales in the Nations League on Sunday.
John Egan, Callum Robinson, Callum O’dowda, Alan Browne and Derrick Williams were all missing from a matchday squad which was reduced to 18 players for Sunday’s game at the Aviva Stadium after an unnamed player tested positive.
Their ranks were further depleted when defender Kevin Long had to leave the field with a badly swollen eye after a clash with Wales striker Kieffer Moore and midfielder James Mcclean was later sent off for a second bookable offence.
Kenny was already without the injured Seamus Coleman, James
Mccarthy, David Mcgoldrick, Harry Arter and Darragh Lenihan.
But Aaron Connolly could line up against Finland. The 20-year-old Brighton & Hove Albion striker, who had been selected to start the game, and Norwich City’s Adam Idah had to be withdrawn from the squad to face Slovakia under a Covid-19 protocol but the test in question provided a “false positive”, meaning the pair could have played after all.
The two players had to sit out because they had been sitting within two metres of the supposedly infected staff member on the flight over, with Connolly, it was later revealed, 10 centimetres too close.
Ireland have taken only two of the first nine Nations League points on offer – they drew 1-1 in Bulgaria before the stalemate with Wales either side of a 1-0 home defeat by Finland – and are yet to win in four attempts under their new manager.