Roy Keane: Robbie will play ‘unless he’s breastfeeding’

Wes Hoolahan is the latest player to be rated doubtful for Ireland's European Championship qualifier against Germany on Thursday with the Norwich City midfielder struggling to shake off a heel injury picked up in Saturday's Premier League game against Leicester city.

The 33 year-old sat out training in Abbotstown on Tuesday morning while Séamus Coleman continued to work with members of the association's medical staff on an adjacent pitch. Cyrus Christie did take part in the main session, though, while Kevin Doyle arrived in from the United States, leaving Marc Wilson and Robbie Keane as the only two players yet to join up with the squad.

Asked about Keane’s availability given that the Irish captain’s wife has just has a baby, assistant manager Roy Keane looked surprised by that suggestion that that might be a factor. “Yeah,” he said dryly, “but he didn’t have the baby. Unless he’s breastfeeding he should be alright.”

More broadly, he accepted the number of injuries, suspensions and late arrivals amounts to a less than perfect build up to such a big game for Ireland.

“It’s not ideal,” acknowledged the Corkman, “but what do you do. You just have to face it and hope that the lads might be available in a day or two. I think with Wes’s injury, it’s pretty sore and the fact that he didn’t train today tells you that it must be sore but another 24 hours will make a big difference to it. Obviously Seamus hasn’t kicked a ball in two or three weeks so he would be more of a concern but we’ll see how it goes.

“They’re experienced players,” he continued. “People like Wes, there’s no problem with his fitness levels. If he needs another day’s rest, it’s not a problem. So, like I said, we’ll give them another 24 hours although ideally, obviously, you would like lads to do something the day before the game but it has been known for players to wait until the day of the game and players like Wes; he’s played regularly recently, you would give him that benefit I think. He’s obviously an important player for us. David Meyler, he suggested, is in contention to start in midfield with Christie the more likely starter at right back in the event, as is ever more likely, that Coleman misses out.

“Yeah, I would have thought he (Meyler) would have a better chance in midfield because obviously Cyrus has come on the scene. We still don’t know what the situation with Séamus is but I think that if Meyler was looking to start it would be more likely to be in midfield.

Asked about Germany’s recent improvement - they beat both Poland and Scotland last month - Keane said that he feels they are a better team now than when Ireland faced them in Gelsenkirchen.

“Yes, absolutely,” he said. “But I think we are as well. I think we’re a stronger team; like you expect with any campaign, teams improve. Obviously we were still new to the job at the time. I think we’re a better team but certainly Germany’s form has improved.

“As you would expect, they were a bit sluggish at the start, but with the qualities that they have it was only a matter of time before they started winning matches and top the group no doubt. But we’ll be ready.”

Asked which of Germany's players particularly impress him, meanwhile, Jeff Hendrick said that he admires all of their midfielders before adding: "But on Thursday hopefully I won't be out there admiring them. I'll get stuck into them. I don't want to be standing off them, admiring them during the game.....if selected."