CAPTAIN SEAMUS COLEMAN will likely miss Ireland’s Euro 2020 playoff with Slovakia on Thursday with a hamstring strain. 

Coleman was taken off during Everton’s Premier League win over Brighton with a hamstring strain, suffered when giving chase to his international team-mate Aaron Connolly. 

Stephen Kenny told the media today that a scan this morning showed Coleman suffered a hamstring strain that “will likely” rule him out of Thursday’s game. He will call somebody up to replace Coleman, though declined to identify the player this afternoon as contact has not been made with said player’s club. 

Kenny spoke with Coleman on the phone last night. 

“He is disappointed, he loves playing for his country”, said Kenny of the conversation with his captain. “He knows this is a very important game.” 

Coleman’s absence would, perversely, solve Kenny’s selection conundrum involving he and Matt Doherty at right back, but the Irish manager doesn’t see it in the same terms. 

“I have never had concerns about having a dilemma. We can never have enough good players, we don’t have that in every position and that’s a problem we would like.”

Elsewhere, Blackburn defender Darragh Lenihan has been ruled out with a knee injury, and has been replaced by Burnley defender Kevin Long. There is a doubt about Harry Arter too, who was taken off during Nottingham Forest’s defeat to Bristol City with a thigh problem. 

Jack Byrne, taken off with 15 minutes remaining in Shamrock Rovers’ league win over Sligo on Friday, is fit to join up with the squad, as is Robbie Brady, who has ben struggling with a rib injury. 

Kenny faces an anxious day today, however, with 11 of his squad involved in league games across England and Scotland today. 

Ireland face Slovakia in Bratislava on Thursday night for a place in next month’s Euro 2020 play-off final with weather Bosnia or Northern Ireland. That play-off is followed by Uefa Nations League games at home to Wales on Sunday and away to Finland on Wednesday week.