Manchester United goalkeeper Kieran O'Hara has joined League One side Burton Albion on a season-long loan, saying he wants to become a "full senior international".
The 23-year-old joined the Red Devils at the age of eight and has progressed through the youth ranks and has had loan spells at six other clubs. He has also won 12 caps at under-21 level for the Republic of Ireland.
The Manchester-native qualifies to play for the Boys in Green through his grandparents from Galway and received a call-up from Mick McCarthy to the provisional squad for the Euro 2020 qualifiers in March against Gibraltar and Georgia - however, had been cut from the 23-man panel.
Martin O'Neill brought him into the Republic of Ireland squad for a friendly against Turkey in Antalya in 2018, but he didn't make an appearance in the game.
Last season, he was on loan with League Two side Macclesfield Town making 42 appearances, and helping the team to narrowly avoid relegation out of the Football League.
Speaking after signing for the Brewers, O'Hara said he wants to win a full international cap, “I’m ready to step up to that next level and show that I’m more than capable of climbing the leagues and reaching, hopefully, one day, the Premier League.
“I hope I can play regularly and put in top performances for Burton. If that’s recognised, hopefully, that will help me make the next step of becoming a full senior international.”
He joins manager Nigel Clough, who is in his second spell in charge of Burton Albion. Clough says his experience from Macclesfield last season should help his progression, “you look at the scale of Macclesfield’s achievement last year and clearly there must have been some people doing extremely well for them and he was certainly one of them.
"For them to stay up was incredible and he played a major role in that. He will come in feeling confident and with the pedigree of being at Manchester United for a number of years, he fits the bill.
“This is the next stage for him, and we want to help him get into the full Republic of Ireland squad as well. He was our first choice all along and I’m delighted we have got the deal done. The balance was right in the goalkeeping department last season and we have that again now.”
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.
