'Evan will be ready' - John O'Shea upbeat about star striker Ferguson's chances of playing against England

John O'Shea expects Evan Ferguson will be ready to go for Ireland's highly anticipated UEFA Nations League B opener on Saturday evening - when they go head-to-head with old foes England.

The game is also the first chance to see new head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson in action, having taken on the role in July, following O’Shea’ short stint in charge.

The interim manager, who was in charge for four matches following the departure of Stephen Kenny last November and is now working as Hallgrimsson’s assistant, has been observing Ferguson in training this week and has been impressed with what he has seen from the young striker.

The Brighton forward had an operation at the end of last season and has slowly been working his way back to full fitness throughout pre-season and the opening weeks of the new campaign.

While he was an unused substitute in the Carabao Cup last week, the 19-year-old was released for international duty and is in contention for minutes against England, and Greece next Tuesday.

"Evan will be ready for Saturday," said O’Shea today.

"He has had a couple of sessions with us and will have a full one again [on Wednesday].

"He's not been back long, and he's been out for a few months, but he's young enough and he's ready. He has shown that he's nice and sharp in training.

O’Shea urged caution, however, acknowledging that they would have to manage Ferguson’s minutes over the course of the Dublin double-header, while constantly liaising with his club regarding his return.

"We're also realistic to know that he's just back in from a couple of weeks of training," said O’Shea.

"We've to get the balance right. He's been sharp in training and hopefully that continues over the next couple of days, and we make a decision later on in the