John O’Shea and Stephen Ward in doubt for Austria clash

With the crucial World Cup qualifier against Austria now less than two weeks away, the weekend brought two fresh injury headaches for Republic of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill.

John O’Shea was forced off before half-time as struggling Sunderland were hammered 4-1 at home to Arsenal in Saturday’s early kick-off.

A few hours later the same fate befell Stephen Ward as Burnley dug in to claim a scoreless draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford.