Manchester United defender John O’Shea has withdrawn from the Republic of Ireland Under-21 squad to face Finland in next week’s friendly.
The Waterford born centre-back, who was named as captain in Don Givens’ squad, is being kept at Old Trafford following discussions between Givens and United boss Alex Ferguson.
With the Premiership season just over 24 hours away, Ferguson already has an injury crisis on his hands at the back.
British record signing Rio Ferdinand is sidelined with a damaged ankle while Wes Brown sustained a broken ankle on Wednesday night and has been ruled out for at least three months.
Gary Neville is still not 100 per cent fit having broken his foot at the tail end of last season and ‘keeper Fabien Barthez is also out of action.
The upshot is that O’Shea, who played the full 90 minutes in Hungary on Wednesday, will be central to Ferguson’s plans over the next few weeks and the Manchester United manager will be loathe to see him risked in a friendly.
Bohemians’ defender Jason McGuinness will replace O’Shea in the Ireland squad.