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Belfast Live
Belfast Live
Sport
Darren Fullerton

Northern Ireland boss Ian Baraclough has fresh injury concern after Boro v Chelsea cup tie

Middlesbrough defender Paddy McNair is a doubt for Northern Ireland’s forthcoming friendlies after injuring his foot in Saturday’s FA Cup clash with Chelsea.

The versatile 26-year-old, who has won 52 caps for his country, limped off 53 minutes into Saturday’s 2-0 quarter-final defeat at the Riverside Stadium.

He was accidentally trodden on by Boro keeper Joe Lumley and boss Chris Wilder fears he could be sidelined for “seven to 10 days”.

Read More: Ali Pour predicts bright future for Glentoran after confirming "long term" vision for club

Northern Ireland travel to Luxembourg on Friday (March 25) before welcoming Hungary to Windsor Park next Tuesday (March 29).

Wilder said: “The goalkeeper trod on Paddy’s foot. It’s an impact injury on the top of his foot, so it’s incredibly sore.

“Looking at Paddy’s foot at the time when he came off, I don’t think he’ll be playing any football for the next seven to ten days.

“Obviously, we’ll wait to see if the swelling goes down, and it’ll be assessed. Paddy’s very passionate about his country and wants to go and play.”

Ian Baraclough's squad meets up on Monday before travelling to Luxembourg later in the week.

Romelu Lukaku and Hakim Ziyech were on target for Chelsea as they progressed to the semi-finals.

Read more: Glentoran can't keep relyIng on two players keeping them in the title race

Read more: Jurgen Klopp hails "top boy" Conor Bradley ahead of FA Cup clash

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