Mick McCarthy has provided an update on the likelihood of Patrick Bamford playing for his Republic of Ireland team.
Speaking at the launch of the Euro 2020 National Football Exhibition at the University of Limerick, McCarthy said: "I’m not going chasing him anymore.
“It was left on the back-burner and I think that it’s up to Patrick."
McCarthy first expressed an interest in Bamford, who qualifies for the Republic of Ireland due to his maternal grandmother, back in December after taking the role over from Martin O'Neill the previous month.
However he has been left frustrated by Bamford all year, between struggling to fix up a meeting, injuries and the former Chelsea player telling him he wanted to focus on the end of the season with Leeds United.
The former Ipswich boss expressed concern that if Bamford doesn't call soon, he might no longer be the Republic of Ireland boss, saying: "The length of time it takes, I might be out of here before then".
In his latest comments, his frustration was clear for all to see and he has very much put the ball in Bamford's court.
He said: "If he rings me up and he wants to play, then yes. But let me ask you a question. If you are an Irish player and you thought that you were good enough to play for Ireland, what would you do? Would you pick the phone up? That’s what I did. If he wants to play, he’s got to [pick up the phone]."
Bamford's season was disrupted by injury and he was limited to 15 appearances, scoring 10 goals.
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