Reid a doubt for Samba visit

STEVEN REID has emerged as Ireland’s biggest injury worry ahead of tomorrow’s friendly with Brazil at Croke Park and, if his suspect knee fails to show significant improvement this morning, Don Givens will call up a replacement for the Blackburn Rovers midfielder.

Already, Givens has drafted in Alex Bruce in place of Andy O’Brien, confirmation of whose retirement was still awaited by the caretaker manager yesterday.

“Steven Reid stepped out because he’s got a bit of a knee problem that we will have to assess,” said Givens. “It’s a bit more serious than we thought. We will assess it and call up someone else if he is out.”

On the somewhat murky circumstances surrounding the retirement of Bolton defender O’Brien, Givens admitted: “I haven’t been able to make contact with him and haven’t been informed that a letter from him to the FAI has arrived yet. But I would still like to talk things through with Andy.”

Better news for Givens is that Robbie Keane, an early doubt with an ankle problem, came successfully through training yesterday, while neither Damien Duff nor Shay Given, who restricted themselves to a warm down in a windy Gannon Park appeared to show any ill effects from their involvement in Newcastle United’s 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough on Sunday.

By contrast, there is bound to be widespread disappointment at the news that Kaka has withdrawn from Brazil’s squad, although Don Givens was of the view that the opposition could probably take that sort of setback in their stride.

“I suppose the public would have liked to see Kaka, he’s a top player in the world,” Givens conceded. “But they can replace players with a lot of high quality stuff. It would need a lot to happen for them to be weakened as a team. But we’ve got players who can give Brazil problems too. We have no complex about that.”

Despite Richard Dunne’s strong criticism of the prolonged search for a new manager, Givens insisted that the mood was positive in the Irish squad.

“I was never great for reading the papers and since this process started I certainly don’t read the papers,” he said with a thin smile. “The selection process is not getting in the way at all, it’s out of the way completely now. I’m focused on this game now and that’s all I’m thinking about.”

And it helps, of course, that the opposition are the most famous footballing nation on earth.

“Yeah, the players are up for this one,” he agreed. “We have to be realistic — if this had been a different kind of friendly, you might get one or two who the clubs wouldn’t want playing a friendly match. But when you’re playing against Brazil, the players insist, ‘I’m off’.”

Once the injury situation is clarified, Givens expects to be able to name his starting XI this evening. And he also confirmed that Ireland will play a 4-4-2 formation tomorrow night.

“But don’t tell the Brazilians,” he signed off with a laugh.

Brazil coach Dunga has called Werder Bremen midfielder Diego and Besiktas forward Bobo into the squad.

It is 23-year-old Bobo’s first call-up, while Diego, 22, already has 25 caps to his name.

Revised Brazil squad: Julio Cesar (Inter Milan), Renan (Internacional); Leonardo Moura (Flamengo), Rafinha (Schalke), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Breno (Bayern Munich), Naldo (Werder Bremen), Luisao (Benfica), Alex (Chelsea); Gilberto Silva (Arsenal), Hernanes (Sao Paulo), Josue (Wolfsburg), Lucas (Liverpool), Richarlyson (Sao Paulo), Anderson (Man Utd), Thiago Neves (Fluminense), Julio Baptista (Real Madrid), Diego (Werder Bremen); Robinho (Real Madrid), Luis Fabiano (Sevilla), Rafael Sobis (Real Betis), Bobo (Besiktas).