Denise O’Sullivan is doubtful for the Ireland WNT’s crucial EURO 2025 qualifier against Sweden in the Aviva Stadium on Friday night.
Having lost their opening two games, Ireland will be hoping to bounce back with positive results in this double-header against the Swedes – but they may have to do it without their midfield maestro.
O’Sullivan went down with what looked to be a serious knee injury in the North Carolina Courage’s clash with Kansas City Current on May 12, and has been recuperating ever since.
Eileen Gleeson told a press conference on Thursday morning that O’Sullivan has been working on a “modified” training programme away from the rest of the group since arriving into camp with Ireland.
The Ireland head coach said that that any call on O’Sullivna’s availability for Friday would be a late one.
Denise has been in with us from the start but she’s been on a modified programme so she’s you know she’s a little bit separate from the group at times so we’re still working towards having them [her and Katie McCabe] on the field.
Denise is on a modified training programme. She’s still in with us. Yeah we’ll have to keep assessing and modifying to make sure she can potentially be available then.
There’ll be late calls. We always knew she was gonna be on a modified training programme. We’re aware, we knew we would be [waiting], we knew there was an injury before she came in.
We’re in the same position we were before we came into the camp with Denise.
In a more positive update, Gleeson said that Katie McCabe is with the camp and well-rested after Arsenal’s contentious post-season jaunt to Australia.
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Ireland v Sweden: Eileen Gleeson and Caitlin Hayes look ahead to huge Aviva clash
Ireland face Sweden in the Aviva Stadium on Friday night, before travelling to Stockholm for the return fixture on Tuesday May 4.
12 April 2022; Katie McCabe of Republic of Ireland shoots to score her side’s first goal during the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 qualifying match between Sweden and Republic of Ireland at Gamla Ullevi in Gothenburg, Sweden. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
The trip to Sweden will bring positive memories of the 2023 World Cup qualifying game which saw Katie McCabe score a memorable strike to secure a draw and drive Ireland towards a play-off spot.
Head coach Gleeson, however, is not interested in dwelling on the past, and says this Ireland team is a very different one to that which faced the Swedes in Gothenburg in 2022.
We haven’t really looked or focused on the game from 2022, a lot has happened from then, there are World Cups, various campaigns, Nations Leagues, so we would be looking at the more recent games.
They have evolved as a team, we have evolved as a team, different players, different management set-up, so there is not a real focus on that, as that time has moved on.
Sweden were bronze medalists at the last two World Cups and semi-finalists at EURO 2022, and Gleeson is under no illusions as to the danger they will pose to Ireland over the coming days.
Defender Caitlin Hayes was alongside Gleeson at Thursday’s press conference, off the back of a memorable campaign with Celtic.
30 May 2024; Head coach Eileen Gleeson and Caitlin Hayes during a Republic of Ireland women’s media conference at Castleknock Hotel in Dublin. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
The Hoops secured the Scottish title in the most dramatic of circumstances on the final day, scoring an injury-time winner against Hibs to pip their archrivals Rangers to the crown on goal difference.
Hayes finished the season with 17 goals, a remarkable tally for a centre-back – and head coach Gleeson joked that she would be happy to see her pop up with a few in the upcoming qualifiers.
The Celtic defender said on Thursday that, though reflection on her club season would have to wait, it was the perfect way to enter an international window.
If I’m honest I think the reflection will come after this camp, there’s not a really a time to think about what I’ve done in a Celtic shirt.
Now I’m in an Ireland top and there is no time for distractions. I definitely have that time after this camp. But yeah pure elation and it was obviously history for the club and it’s just an honour to be a part of it.
We are likely to see Hayes start against Sweden on Friday. With ticket sales close to 30,000, a great atmosphere is to be expected on Lansdowne Road, and Hayes says the squad are happy to once again be back in the national stadium.
It’s massive, I don’t think I could ever say get used to playing in such a stadium, having the opportunity to play there. But definitely having the crowd behind us is something we enjoy playing in front of and it is always good hearing them when you do something well, and the opposite, when you do something bad, you are also aware of them.
It’s good to have them there.
Here’s hoping they have something to cheer about on Friday night. Kick-off at the Aviva Stadium for Ireland v Sweden is at 7:30pm, with the game live on RTÉ 2. Tickets are still available via Ticketmaster.
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