David Sneyd

SEAMUS COLEMAN IS in the provisional Republic of Ireland squad for the start of the Nations League campaign this month.

Heimir Hallgrímsson has drawn up his long list with the process of informing clubs and players underway before announcing his final list next Thursday.

The veteran defender, who turns 38 on 11 October, made an appearance on Stick To Football on Tuesday and said a decision on his club future would be made “very, very soon.”

The 42 understands that Hallgrímsson has not ruled the influential defender out of his immediate plans despite the uncertainty over his situation and lack of a pre-season.

Coleman explained on the podcast how it was only Hallgrímsson’s intervention at the end of last season that stopped him from quitting the game completely when his time at Everton came to an end after 17 years.

He could have easily remained part of the furniture on Merseyside but David Moyes’ preference to usher Coleman down the coaching route did not appeal to the player.

While playing regular football is not viewed by Hallgrímsson and FAI staff as a necessity for Coleman to remain part of the international set-up, he was not going to get the minutes required at Everton to satisfy his own demands.

Still, so long as Coleman is contracted to a club and is training regularly at the very least that will be sufficient to be in contention for Ireland. If he can manage a dozen or so starts over the course of a long campaign that is viewed as bonus territory.

That’s no surprise given Coleman managed just 12 minutes of Premier League action but featured five times for Ireland leading up to the World Cup play-off defeat to Czechia in March.

His form and influence at the end of that qualifying campaign copper fastened the Ireland set up’s belief that Coleman had plenty left to give.

Indeed, after taking part in the summer friendlies with Qatar at the end of May and then travelling to Montreal for another fixture with Canada in June, a graphic was released by the FAI just after the summer transfer window in England opened in July. It showed that from September to June Coleman’s eight appearances and 617 minutes of action was the sixth most of any Ireland player.

Not that Coleman needed such a stat for his CV, but it was something which was appreciated making its way into the public domain and was also a welcome reminder for some interested parties that he was still delivering when relied upon.

The belief and patience shown in him by Hallgrímsson, who previously admitted his misjudgement in leaving Coleman out of his squad at the start of the World Cup campaign for not featuring in Everton’s plans last year, perhaps explains why he said he was “relaxed” about his club situation.

Coleman hasn’t felt pressured or rushed into taking a club for the sake of it. Chris Wilder spoke with him about moving to Sheffield United but the Donegal native felt it was too soon after leaving Everton to jump straight in elsewhere.

It seemed apt that one of his good friends in Ireland set-ups down through the years, Matt Doherty, eventually ended up at Bramall Lane instead, but it says much about the level of depth, both in Coleman’s position and leadership, that he remains such a vital component of Hallgrímsson’s plans.

Captain Nathan Collins is also a significant injury concern for the start of the Nations League after picking up a calf strain and it’s expected he will be absent. With Robbie Brady also without a club and Jake O’Brien out in the cold at Everton due to an apparent disagreement with Moyes over his favoured position, Hallgrímsson has a few issues to deal with.

The revival of John Egan at Hull City, who are the only club in England’s top four divisions yet to concede a goal this season, at least provides some cover in the heart of defence, while Dara O’Shea has also been utilised at right back for Ipswich Town so far this term.

Hallgrímsson is due to attend Southampton’s Championship clash with Swansea City on Tuesday night. As well as Ryan Manning and Finn Azaz with the Saints, Swansea right back Josh Key has long been on the FAI’s radar.

Coleman can join a club in the coming days as a free agent outside the transfer window and if he can get that tied up then you can take it that he will be drafted in by Hallgrímsson for the games with Kosovo, Israel (to be played in Hungary and Serbia) and Austria between 24 September and 4 October.

Those Israel fixtures are also going to have intense scrutiny given the Stop The Game protests and the FAI’s decision to move the home game from Dublin to a behind-closed-doors venue in Backa Topola, 160 kilometres from Belgrade.

“I had a good run, it was more so the Ireland stuff that has put a bit of doubt in my mind. It’s a long time, I wouldn’t even be thinking two years ahead,” Coleman said on Stick To Football about the carrot of lining out in Dublin at Euro 2028.

“I’m ticking over, I’m training myself. I’m trying to stay as fit as I can. But it’s not the same. Now the window’s closed, things might open up a little bit. I’ll be making a decision very, very soon.”