Dara O'Shea is no John Egan - but he could be in time. That's according to Stephen Kenny who is considering handing the West Brom defender his first senior cap in Finland tonight after his late promotion from the Under-21s.
O’Shea was in Pisa preparing for their key qualifier with Italy until Kenny called him up on Sunday amid a centre-back crisis.
With Sheffield United ace Egan ruled out having been deemed a close contact to a positive Covid-19 case, Kenny needed options.
Kevin Long, another call-up, suffered swelling over his eye in the Wales game on Sunday after being caught by an elbow.
The Burnley man was forced off midway through the first-half and Matt Doherty had to fill in alongside Shane Duffy as a makeshift centre-back.
O’Shea was a firm favourite of Kenny’s when he was Ireland’s Under-21s boss, so the manager knows what he is getting.
Kenny said: “Dara has improved a lot, he's been a consistent improver.
“He's part of the West Brom team that won promotion playing most weeks and he's been ever present in their Premiership team this year.
“He's only 21 years of age and has a very good future ahead of him.”
But Kenny added: “He's not at the level of John Egan. John is an experienced Premier League player who is a terrific player for Ireland.
“Dara is just learning the game still, but he has a great attitude and he always shows a great desire to get better.”
