Business as usual for the two Irelands

STEPHEN IRELAND will not be part of the Irish squad for next month’s World Cup qualifier against Cyprus but should the Manchester City player indicate he is ready to return to international football then Giovanni Trapattoni will not hesitate to call him up for the October home game against world champions Italy.

The Ireland manager will be at Eastlands today to see Manchester City play Wolverhampton Wanderers and, while there is no concrete plan for Trapattoni to meet with Ireland after the game, the Italian yesterday made it clear that any signal of a willingness to return on the part of the player would be eagerly reciprocated by the Irish management.

Announcing his squad for the games against Cyprus and South Africa, Trapattoni also hit back at critics who have argued that his adherence to a rigid system would make it difficult for him to accommodate Ireland.