How Heimir's squad options have been faring

On Tuesday, Czechia showed their hand, and on Thursday it will be Heimir Hallgrimsson's turn to unveil his most anticipated Republic of Ireland squad to date.

The players he selects will be the ones tasked with trying to outfox their hosts in Prague in the World Cup play-off semi-final on 26 March.

Emerge victorious at the Fortuna Arena and then it would be onto a winner-takes-all decider against either Denmark or North Macedonia, which would take place at Aviva Stadium five days later.

But since the incredible Troy Parrott-inspired November window when the Boys in Green beat Portugal and Hungary back-to-back to book an improbable spot in the play-offs, Hallgrimsson has been dealt a number of injury blows.

That's meant there are more question marks than expected about the final shape of the squad that will be named on Thursday.

Let's take a look at how the goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and attacking options have fared of late.

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GOALKEEPERS

Hallgrimsson will have his fingers crossed that Caoimhín Kelleher comes through this weekend unscathed for Brentford in their Premier League fixture against Leeds on Saturday night.

The Ireland number one has more than proven his worth for Keith Andrews' side during the current campaign, keeping seven clean sheets and making three penalty saves. The latter attribute might come in handy in the play-off.

The other member of the saved-a-Cristiano-Ronaldo-penalty-for-my-country club still remains a doubt however. Gavin Bazunu had moved to Stoke City on loan from Southampton for game-time during the January transfer window.

But since keeping a clean sheet on his Potters debut on 17 January, he has been sidelined by injury and was listed as unavailable by his club for their match against Watford on Saturday.

Everton number two Mark Travers will almost certainly be in the squad, although he has only played 180 minutes of football this season. That was in the Carabao Cup and given the Toffees exited in the third round, the Kildare man won't have had meaningful minutes since 23 September.

Max O'Leary had been established as a starter for a struggling West Brom team after joining them in January. His debut did not go swimmingly as he made an early error.

But the 29-year-old went on to keep two clean sheets in his next eight games. O'Leary was on course for a third at the weekend against Hull City.

But the one-time Ireland cap had to limp off due to an ankle injury sustained on 66 minutes after being caught by Boys in Green colleague John Egan. The extent of his injury has yet to be confirmed, although Baggies manager James Morrison did indicate his hope that it's not serious.

Another option to add depth would be Josh Keeley. Hallgrimsson called up the now Luton keeper for last June's friendlies against Senegal and Luxembourg and the Meathman has played in all but one League One game this year.

Defenders

Nathan Collins wears the captain's armband for club and country. But the Brentford defender's form has been patchy of late.

The 24-year-old has been back in Andrews' starting line-up though in the last couple of games after sitting out fixtures against Newcastle, Arsenal and Burnley.

At international level, he has a tendency to up his game when Séamus Coleman is starting beside him whether at full-back or on the right of a back three.

The Everton veteran remains a key dressing room lieutenant for Hallgrimsson and carried that onto the pitch last November.

However, the Donegal man has not played a minute of first-team football since limping off ten minutes into Everton's 1-0 win at Manchester United on the 24th of that month. He has been named on the Toffees' bench for five of their last nine league games.

In contrast, Dara O'Shea has played every single minute in the Championship for Ipswich Town and has captained a backline that has kept four clean sheets in the last six games.

Coleman's Everton team-mate Jake O'Brien is also a shoo-in for the squad. The Corkman remains a regular for his club, usually starting at right back. But he has flitted into the middle on occasion, including a gutsy display on Saturday where he helped keep Arsenal at bay until the tide turned late on.

Liam Scales is suspended for Prague however, although the Celtic defender would be available for Ireland should they progress past the Czechs. He's a regular starter for Martin O'Neill and captained the Hoops against Motherwell on Saturday.

Like Scales, Festy Ebosele will serve a yellow-card suspension for the Czech game. But in contrast, his game-time has been less regular. At the start of the season, the Wexford wing-back got regular minutes for Istanbul Basaksehir.

But before returning - and then being sent off for two yellows - against Galatasaray on Saturday, Ebosele had not been included in Basaksehir's previous eight Super Lig matchday squads.

At 33, the aforementioned John Egan has been making up for lost time. The Hull City centre-back was included in Hallgrimsson's last two Ireland squads, playing four minutes against Portugal in the October window.

At club level, he has been a regular for the Tigers, only missing four of their 38 Championship fixtures.

It's a similar tale for Queens Park Rangers skipper Jimmy Dunne, who only missed the first two games of the season but has been an ever-present since.

There's no doubt about how valued Ryan Manning is now at international level, and he has also been a key man for Southampton in their up-and-down season in the Championship.

Versatile along the left flank, it's been a left-back berth in recent games in a season in which the Galwegian has scored six times in 34 league games, including two in the past six.

US-born Kevin O'Toole was the surprise call-up for November. Most of the time since coincided with the Major League Soccer off-season. But since the 2026 campaign began late last month, he has played 90 minutes in all four of New York City's opening fixtures.

The ultra-experienced Robbie Brady missed out on all three of the World Cup qualifying windows in the autumn due to a calf injury.

But the 34-year-old has just inched his way back into first team action this month, featuring for just over half an hour across two of Preston's last four games.

Under the watchful eye of Robbie Keane, Callum O'Dowda has had a mixed time of it in Hungary for Ferencvaros with injuries limiting his availability on occasion. But he did play the full 90 as the Budapest club beat Braga in their Europa League first leg last week.

Matt Doherty, meanwhile, is becoming more of a fringe figure at an improving Wolves. The Dubliner has remained on the bench for the entirety in ten of their last 12 Premier League games, and was also not called upon for their FA Cup defeat to Liverpool.

Andrew Omobamidele has been a little out of sight, out of mind since moving to Strasbourg. But his game-time has been quietly upped in Ligue 1 in recent weeks, with the Kildare man starting their last five games. That has partially coincided with ex-Wolves manager Gary O'Neil's appointment as successor to Liam Rosenior.

Midfielders

The first major fitness blow for Ireland since November came when Burnley captain Josh Cullen suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury that not only rules him out of March but also the World Cup should qualification be attained.

As a result, the scrutiny on other central midfield options have been heightened. The expectation is that Jason Knight and Jayson Molumby are the primary options to sit in front of the Irish defence in Prague.

Both are regular starters for their respective clubs in the Championship. Molumby was on the scoresheet for West Brom against Southampton last week, while Knight continues to wear the armband for Bristol City.

The latter even started in an unfamiliar centre-back role for the Robins against promotion contenders Middlesbrough on Saturday.

Charlton's Conor Coventry earned his first Ireland cap as a sub in the win over Portugal last November. His minutes did dip somewhat from late January until late last month but the 25-year-old has started the Addicks' last four games.

Jack Taylor has started about half of Ipswich's Championship assignments this season, and that's been two starts and three substitute appearances in their last five, scoring in their recent 3-3 draw with Stoke.

In good form this campaign is Jamie McGrath with the ex-Dundalk midfielder having contributed eight goals and three assists to the Hibernian cause across 28 Scottish Premiership games. Twenty-four of those have been starts, including the full 90 minutes in the last three.

Killian Phillips has been a virtual ever-present for St Mirren, netting thrice across the campaign, while Mark Sykes has started 20 of Bristol City's league fixtures in his customary wider role.

Alan Browne hasn't been capped since the September 2024 window. But the Corkman has excelled for Middlesbrough this season, whether centrally or at right back, culminating in the Championship Player of the Month award for January.

Further forward, Finn Azaz is a likely starter in Prague and he is coming off a season so far that has yielded nine goals and six assists in 35 league games for Southampton. Like McGrath at Hibs, the last three matches have seen him go the distance and he also earned the Saints a penalty in their FA Cup last 16 win over Fulham on 8 March.

Injuries will test the midfield depth, however. The uncapped Bosun Lawal, who had been viewed as a potential option in a holding role, has yet to return from injury and even before then, the winter season at Stoke had been characterised by filling in a variety of roles across the breadth of the back four.

Will Smallbone, though, has made tentative steps back for Millwall since a hamstring injury that had kept him out since October.

He has played a total of 14 minutes in the last three Championship games. Andrew Moran has also played three times this season since joining Preston permanently after a loan spell at LAFC in January. But he did start Saturday's defeat at Norwich in a deeper role.

Forwards

The obvious starting point when it comes to strikers and wide attackers are the absences of Evan Ferguson and Mikey Johnston, both due to ankle injuries.

Which means depth will be sorely tested, and ultimately increases the onus on Troy Parrott.

His heroics against Portugal and Hungary need no introduction given how they put a pep in every step around the country.

What is heartening is he is coming into this crucial window in brilliant goalscoring form. The way the AZ Alkmaar striker took his goals against Sparta Prague in their Europa League first leg was a testament to his confidence.

Indeed, his club will be in Prague again on the day the Ireland squad is announced, a week out from when he will lead the line for Ireland in the Czech capital.

Parrott is up to 27 goals in 39 games across all competitions, with 11 of those coming since the turn of the year.

Along with Parrott and Ferguson, Adam Idah was the only other Irish player to score in the group qualifying phase. But a hamstring injury has kept the Cork man out of action for Swansea since December.

Swans head coach Vitor Matos did say that Idah was not ready for last week's Welsh derby against Wrexham, and he would have one final chance to get some game-time in this weekend.

Chiedozie Ogbene was used to good effect in an advanced role in Budapest to stretch the game. But since the Corkonian limped off in that game, it has been hard for him to break back into the picture at his loan club Sheffield United.

He came on for a couple of minutes againt Norwich on 11 March and before that his only game-time in 2026 was a 19-minute cameo against Oxford in early February - albeit an appearance that yielded an assist.

Johnny Kenny also made an impact in Budapest in his Ireland senior debut as a sub. But the Sligo man has since swapped Celtic for Bolton on loan.

He got his first goal against Exeter last month and has also contributed three assists in League One.

Hallgrimsson will have been glad to see another January loanee find the net of late. That was Sammie Szmodics, who Ipswich ushered out the door to Derby County.

The 30-year-old's winner against Portsmouth on Monday was his second for the Rams in seven appearances and game-time has not been an issue.

In contrast, winger Kasey McAteer has been largely benched by Ipswich in recent weeks, featuring for just 15 minutes this month. In the season as a whole, he has not scored and has just one assist in 22 league appearances - eight of which have been starts.

Sinclair Armstrong is faring better on that front for Bristol City with 11 starts and 26 appearances off the bench, which has yielded four goals, including a finish against Wrexham in mid-February and a New Year's Day brace versus Portsmouth.

Former Shelbourne forward Jack Moylan has also emerged as a wildcard based on his recent excellence for Lincoln City.

Dubbed a "magic man" by his manager after a brace against Burton, he has netted seven times in League One since the turn of the year, albeit his role is often off a striker.

And then there is the evergreen David McGoldrick. His international career would have been considered done and dusted after he stepped away in 2020.

But amid the aforementioned injury crisis, glittering form for Barnsley in the English third tier has brought the 38-year-old back onto the radar. That earned him the February Player of the Month after a run of 12 goals in 2026.

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