Keith Andrews: I nearly pulled my hamstring jumping off the sofa when Troy scored

Brentford manager Keith Andrews  

Brentford boss Keith Andrews welcomed back Ireland's World Cup heroes Nathan Collins and Caoimhín Kelleher ahead of this Saturday's Premier League trip to Brighton, with the former Ireland assistant manager revealing the week's drama took its toll on him too.

“It was brilliant for the country. I nearly pulled my hamstring jumping off the sofa when Troy [Parrott] scored that goal [against Hungary]," Andrews joked,

“I’m delighted, first and foremost, to see the team get through a tricky window."

Of Collins and Kelleher, who played key roles for Ireland in the wins over Portugal and Hungary, Andrews added: 

“It’s great for those two - I have a vested interest in Caoimhín and Nathan.

“To see what they achieved, they’re big players for us and the country, it was a special week and I know that they enjoyed it.”

Andrews also spoke about attacker Fábio Carvalho, who has suffered a season-ending ACL injury.

“It happened around a week ago in training. It’s been a tough week for obvious reasons – it’s devastating for him.

“I feel for him. He’s someone who I have a lot of respect for as a man. This season he’s not been given as many opportunities as I ideally would’ve liked. He knows that.

“We were in constant communication before the injury about his development as a player and ambitions. Unfortunately, that’s been taken away from him for a period.

“We’ll support him really well as we always do. Antoni Milambo did his [ACL] a few weeks ago, so he’s already on that path to recovery.

“Fábio knows he’ll get support from everybody at the football club during this difficult period.”