Robbie Brady will captain the Irish team against Iceland on Tuesday evening with the Dubliner taking over from Seamus Coleman in the wake the injury on Friday night that could keep the Everton full-back side-lined for anything up to a year.
Martin O’Neill said that several of the squad’s more peripheral players are likely to get opportunities to impress in the friendly while a number of the more experienced players still with the squad might be completely rested.
“Robbie will play and he will captain the team,” said the manager at his pre-match press conference after squad training at Abbotstown, “but, in fairness to clubs, some of the lads who started on Friday night won’t start this game and might not participate at all.”
O'Neill said that he does want to give out international caps too lightly but confirmed that the likes of Brentford's John Egan as well as Preston pair Daryl Horgan and Andy Boyle are all in contention to feature against the European Championship quarter-finalists.
“The lads will have the opportunity to go and press a claim for future appearances,” he said.
O’Neill said that, given Iceland’s growing stature on the international stage in recent years, the game represents “a tough challenge” for his players but that it, and Friday night’s draw with Wales, have inevitably been overshadowed by the injury to Seamus Coleman.
“I think the result was secondary even on Friday night,” he said. “It’s a terrible blow for the player. I think he’s coming to terms with it but he’s down, as you would be. The realisation that he is going to be out of action for a very long time has dawned on him.
“As a manager your first reaction is that you have lost a very important player but you feel for the player and the pain he is going through. It’s major blow, not just for him but for his family.”
O’Neill said that the result on Friday had not done much to change the complexion of Ireland’s qualifying group but he described Serbia’s win over Georgia had been an important boost for them as they join Ireland at the top of the table.
