Declan Rice and Jack Grealish slipped through Ireland’s grasp but Stephen Kenny won’t be dwelling on it this week.
The West Ham and Aston Villa stars are in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Thursday’s friendly clash with Ireland at Wembley.
But rather than mourn what might have been, Kenny would rather focus on the Irish talent coming through.
“They’re very good players but I’m very happy with the players we’ve got,” said Kenny.
“We’ve got a lot of young players, a lot of talent and we’re not far away from being a very good side.
“I can’t worry about other players who could have been part of the equation.
“We can’t dwell on that and we have to look forward and see what other players are coming through and will emerge.”
Kenny continued: “Some players like John Egan, Enda Stevens, Matt Doherty, who are now mainstays of the team, only became regulars in the last year and a half.
“They’re in their late 20s so other players can emerge later and we have to be cognisant of that.”
But Kenny was asked if there’s anything he can do as senior boss to prevent future Rice and Grealish scenarios.
“I can’t make promises that I can’t fulfill,” he said. “What we can do is try to make the environment at all ages as professional as possible.
“We want a clear pathway between Under-15s and the senior international team.
“We want to make sure that if players are exceptional they move up the ages quicker to accelerate their development. That’s very important.
“If players can play at Under-21 level at 17 and they excel, they can become first-team players soon enough.
“We want to create an environment that players can really identify with, an identity for the Irish team.”
Enda Stevens is Ireland’s chief injury concern ahead of the Wembley clash and the Nations League double-header with Wales and Bulgaria.
The left-back injured his knee in Sheffield United’s defeat to Chelsea yesterday and will be assessed ahead of training at Barnet’s Hive Stadium tomorrow.
“He’s just arriving here at the hotel and he’s quite sore but everyone else is okay,” said Kenny.
