Sevilla’s Ryan Johansson gets Ireland U21 call

He is joined by Getafe’s John Joe Patrick Finn Benoa who is selected in his first Ireland international squad

Tue, 25 May, 2021 - 09:00

Colm O’Connor

Republic of Ireland U21 manager Jim Crawford has named Sevilla’s Ryan Johansson in his 26-man squad for a triple-header of friendlies against Switzerland, Australia and Denmark in Marbella, Spain.

Johansson, who was declared eligible to play for Ireland following clearance from FIFA last week, is one of seven new faces in the squad. Having played at U19 level, he said of his decision to declare for Ireland: “I have a lot of family there, my mother is Irish but also football was an important factor brought into the decision. Also the professionalism of the Irish coaches and how they handled everything as well as the staff from the FAI for setting me up to be able to play for Ireland."

He is joined by Getafe’s John Joe Patrick Finn Benoa who is selected in his first Ireland international squad. Sheffield Wendesday's Ciaran Brennan, Derby County’s Festy Ebosele and Lincoln City’s Sean Roughan get the U21s call for the first time as does UCD striker and League of Ireland First Division top scorer Colm Whelan.

Dan Rose of Schalke 04, who was included in the initial squad ahead of the Wales friendly in March but was unable to travel due to Covid-19 restrictions, will join his first U21 camp. The games will form part of the U21s preparation for their 2023 European Championship qualifiers against Bosnia & Herzegovina and Luxembourg in September.

Fans of the Boys in Green will be able to watch Jim Crawford’s side with the matches against Switzerland and Australia to be shown live on Premier Sports 1 and FreeSports in Ireland and the UK.

Ireland’s game with Denmark on Saturday, June 5 (which kicks-off at 17:00pm) will be shown in full at a later time of 21:30pm on Premier Sports 1.

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND v Switzerland, Australia, Denmark Goalkeepers: Sam Blair (Norwich City), Brian Maher (Bray Wanderers), Dan Rose (Schalke 04)

Defenders: Ciaran Brennan (Sheffield Wednesday), Festy Ebosele (Derby County), Shane Flynn (Leicester City), Andy Lyons (Bohemians), Oisin McEntee (Newcastle United), Mark McGuinness (Arsenal), Lewis Richards (Wolves), Sean Roughan (Lincoln City).

Midfielders: John Joe Patrick Finn Benoa (Getafe), Luca Connell (Celtic), Conor Coventry (West Ham United), Dawson Devoy (Bohemians), Alex Gilbert (Brentford), Conor Grant (Rochdale), Ryan Johansson (Sevilla), Conor Noss (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Louie Watson (Derby County).

Forwards: Jonathan Afolabi (Celtic), Will Ferry (Southampton), Joshua ‘JJ’ Kayode (Rotherham United), Gavin Kilkenny (Bournemouth), Colm Whelan (UCD), Tyreik Wright (Aston Villa)