Southampton midfielder Will Smallbone has been forced to withdraw from the Republic of Ireland squad through injury, it has been confirmed.
Southampton have had Smallbone in and around their first-team picture for a little while now. However, he’s only now enjoying his first run of consistent starts with the Saints following their drop to the Championship.
The midfielder impressed with Stoke City last season and has managed three goals and an assist in 14 league outings this time around. He netted in the win over West Brom at the weekend too, though he was forced off shortly before the hour mark.
Now, it has been confirmed that as a result of the injury, he’s been forced to withdraw from the Republic of Ireland’s international squad. The Southampton man would have been in line to add to his five caps for the country but he’s had to drop out of the squad.
Wrexham man James McClean comes into the squad. The extent of Smallbone’s injury is not mentioned.Squad Update | James McClean travels to the Netherlands 💚
Will Smallbone and Festy Ebosele have both been ruled out through injury and won’t travel with the squad today so McClean comes in for the Netherlands match
Smallbone has been a regular for Southampton this season so a spell on the sidelines would be a blow for both him and Russell Martin’s team. Time will tell what the extent of the injury is, but on the plus side, he’ll now have the international break to recover.
Smallbone has been a regular for Southampton this season so a spell on the sidelines would be a blow for both him and Russell Martin’s team. Time will tell what the extent of the injury is, but on the plus side, he’ll now have the international break to recover.
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