Ogbene out of Ireland friendlies but Mark O'Mahony in contention to profit

Adam Idah will also come into the set-up in buoyant form after his goal against Rangers in Saturday’s Cup final sealed Celtic a double.

Mon, 27 May, 2024 - 23:00

John Fallon

Chiedozie Ogbene and Nathan Collins will join Evan Ferguson, Gavin Bazunu and John Egan on the absent list for Ireland’s upcoming friendlies against Hungary and Portugal, increasing the likelihood of new faces.

John O’Shea is on interim management duty again for this pair of workouts after the FAI failed to hit their self-imposed deadline of February and then April for a new gaffer.

No explanation was provided by director of football Marc Canham for the delay but O’Shea has once again accepted the stopgap responsibility while a hunt he’s gradually become part of continues.

O'Shea was part of Stephen Kenny’s backroom team up to the manager’s departure last November before being asked to fill in for the home March double-header, a scoreless draw against Belgium and 1-0 defeat to Switzerland.

The centurion will unveil his squad on Tuesday, gathering the players from Thursday at their Castleknock Hotel base.

Hungary will be the first Euros bound nation to face Ireland, on Tuesday at Lansdowne Road, before Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal stage their farewell game against the Boys in Green in the southern city of Aveiro, an hour from Porto, on Tuesday, June 11.

Finishing fourth in their Euro qualifying group and failing to land a playoff from the Nations League series which preceded eliminated Ireland from the mix to reach Germany.

With Ireland's first competitive matches of 2024 not starting until England’s visit for the Nations League opener on September 7, and the lack of permanent boss, enticing players carrying knocks was always going to be a challenge.

Ferguson was ruled out for the season in April with an ankle injury while Achilles problems also curbed the campaigns for goalkeeper Bazunu and Sheffield United captain Egan.

Collins has been added to the sidelined list with an unspecified knock but it could be connected to the centre-back missing Brentford’s final game of the season a fortnight ago.

Ogbene returned from a hamstring strain he sustained against Belgium for Luton Town’s final pair of outings. He was unable to keep the Hatters in the top-flight but it’s understood the winger’s unavailability for this gathering is due to family reasons.

On the upside, Sammie Szmodics is in line to win his third cap against another team he was eligible for. It remains to be seen whether Blackburn Rovers succeed in holding onto the Championship’s top scorer amid interest from top-flight suitors.

Adam Idah will also come into the set-up in buoyant form after his goal against Rangers in Saturday’s Cup final sealed Celtic a double.

Troy Parrott is a peer of Idah’s who’s also thrived on loan, his move from Tottenham Hotspur to Excelsior delivering 13 goals.

He’ll miss the Hungary game due to his involvement in the two-legged relegation playoff against NAC Breda.

That may open the way for a bolter such as Mark O’Mahony. That the U21s only have two friendlies, against Croatia and England’s U20s, ensures O’Shea won’t be weakening their Euro qualification prospects and O’Mahony could replace his Brighton clubmate Ferguson after a breakthrough season.

League of Ireland players are also under consideration but this is the one international window that the domestic product doesn’t break for.