Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
DUFF WINNING FITNESS RACE
SHANE DUFFY is winning his fitness battle ahead of the Republic of Ireland’s World Cup play-off against Denmark.
And the towering centre-back could even feature in Brighton’s clash with West Ham tonight.
Duffy sustained a groin injury in last Sunday’s Premier League draw with Everton and his availability for the play-off was in doubt.
But Brighton boss Chris Hughton revealed yesterday that Duffy is expected to be back in the mix quicker than expected.
Hughton said: “At the moment we think he’ll be OK.”
Ireland face Denmark in Copenhagen on November 11 before hosting them in Dublin three days later with a golden ticket to the
World Cup in Russia on offer.
Preston North End striker Sean Maguire remains a doubt for that game because of a hamstring problem shipped at the weekend.
But the former Cork City star has played down the seriousness of the issue, even though he is unlikely to face Wolves tomorrow.
Maguire said: “It’s fine. It was nothing major at all, just precautionary really. I just felt a little twinge on Saturday and I didn’t want to make it any worse.”
Meanwhile, the FAI says it remains in negotiation with the Danish
Football Association regarding an agreement of ticket allocation for both legs.
The association is trying to secure a bigger allocation than the 1,900 tickets offered for the first-leg in Copenhagen by offering the Danes more tickets for the Dublin game.
A number of Premium Level tickets for the home leg on November 11 will go on public sale this morning from the Ticketmaster website.