West Bromwich Albion's Dara O'Shea has been called up to the Republic of Ireland squad for the first time.
The uncapped centre-back will join Stephen Kenny's squad for the UEFA Nations League game against Bulgaria on Thursday.
The 21-year-old was captain of the Ireland U-21s under Kenny and was central to West Brom in the second-half of their promotion push in the Championship this year.
The Dubliner made 21 appearances for Slaven Bilic's side last season as they achieved Premier League promotion as runners-up of the Championship.
Speaking to OTB Sports at a press conference on Sunday, Kenny praised O'Shea's graduation through the Irish underage teams: "Dara has come through the ranks, from under 15 right through every year."
“He’s a centre-half really who’s played right through the ranks at centre-back. He’s played at right-back for a good bit of the season and left-back towards the end of the season.
"With one or two additional injuries, strains and so forth, we've given ourselves that additional cover with Dara coming in.
"His ability to play the four positions is an asset," Kenny said.
Meanwhile, Troy Parrott picked up an injury in Millwall's 3-0 friendly win over Southend United on Saturday.
The 18-year-old striker, who scored earlier in the game, sustained a "tight muscle" during the match.
"He has travelled this morning and will have a scan in the afternoon to see the extent of it," Kenny confirmed.
Starting for Crystal Palace in a friendly against Oxford United during the week, James McCarthy was substituted with an injury on 20 minutes. The midfielder, however, has travelled to join up with the international squad.
“James McCarthy is travelling in today. We’ll assess him and see how he is," Kenny told reporters.
"He played for Crystal Palace midweek and just got a knock on the back of his leg really, just a tackle.
“I know James is very keen to come back and play for Ireland. It’s been a few years since he’s played and I know he’d be a huge addition to us,” Kenny explained.
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
