International football is back as the Republic of Ireland prepare to face Greece in the Aviva Stadium this Friday. Stephen Kenny's men's hopes of qualification are all but gone after defeats to France and the Netherlands during the last block of fixtures in June. The importance of these upcoming games for the development of this young Irish side can not be overstated as they look to build a team that can consistently challenge for qualification in future major tournaments. Here's everything you need to know about Ireland v Greece.
When is Ireland v Greece?
Ireland v Greece kicks off in the Aviva Stadium, this Friday at 19:45.
How to watch Ireland v Greece
The match is available on RTE2 with coverage starting from 19:00. It is also available on RTE player.
Team News
Ireland will be without centre back John Egan, Callum O'Dowda and Liverpool keeper Caoimhín Kelleher due to injury. Stephen Kenny will be delighted to recall Evan Ferguson to his squad along with Celtic's Mikey Johnston and front man Callum Robinson who have both recovered from injury. Celtic defender, Liam Scales has earned a call up after impressing for the SPL Champions this season. A late change to the squad on Monday was the call up of Sammie Szmodics. The Blackburn Rovers man has been on fire in the championship season with seven goals in the campaign so far. His fellow Rovers team mate and U21 star, Andrew Moran, has missed out.
𝗦𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗱 𝗨𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲 | Sammie Szmodics called up for Greece and Gibraltar @EURO2024 qualifiers 🇮🇪
The @Rovers forward, who has scored seven goals in the Championship this season, comes into the squad to replace the injured Aaron Connolly
Welcome back Sammie 💚 pic.twitter.com/YG4dLLqpOL— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) October 9, 2023
For Irish fans, an Ireland team without James McClean is a strange prospect. A man who made his debut under Giovanni Trapattoni, he has been there in some of the best and worst times for Irish football over the past 12 years. The announcement of his retirement from international football will not come as a massive shock considering the amount of time between now and Ireland's next qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup. Despite his exemption from the squad for the game on Friday, he has stated that he will be available for Ireland until the end of the 2024 Euro qualifier campaign. Stephen Kenny was full of praise for McLean's career;
He's had a terrific career. Young Irish players could learn a lot from him and how he approached his career, Ireland was always at the forefront of this thoughts. It was always the pinnacle for him, it was always the most important thing for him to play for his country and you have to respect that.
With Ireland as marginal favourites according to the bookies, Stephen Kenny will be hoping to get the kind of performance he's been waiting for from his young side.
