Seamus Coleman has been ruled out of the Republic of Ireland's friendly with Hungary on Tuesday.
The Donegal native has been unable to recover in time from a hamstring issue to play any part for Stephen Kenny's side.
He had already missed Thursday's win over Andorra and was only an unused substitute for Everton's last game of the Premier League season.
Coleman had linked up with the squad in the hope of recovering in time to play some part.
However, the FAI says he has returned home as a 'precaution'.
Skipper Seamus Coleman returns home ahead of Hungary trip
Despite his best efforts, the captain has been unable to recover from injury as the squad travel to Budapest today
➡️ https://t.co/5ioHdkFqI4#COYBIG | #HUNIRL | #WeAre100 pic.twitter.com/5k30frGPVn— FAIreland ⚽️🇮🇪 (@FAIreland) June 6, 2021
"The Ireland skipper came into the training camp with a hamstring injury and had been working hard to be fit for the international friendly in Budapest on Tuesday, June 8," the FAI said this morning.
"After further assessment this week, Coleman will return home as a precaution with him unable to recover from the injury in time for the fixture.
"The rest of the squad will travel to Budapest later today from Girona, Spain."
Ireland will be hoping to build on Thursday's win over Andorra, which was Stephen Kenny's first as manager.
A Troy Parrott brace helped the visitors to a 4-1 win, though they did fall 1-0 behind after 52 minutes.
It is the last game for the squad ahead of the start of the World Cup qualifiers in September.
Ireland begin their campaign away to Portugal on September 1st.
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.
