Hallgrimsson hopeful 'gamechanger' will emerge in Ireland squad

Heimir Hallgrimsson is looking for a 'gamechanger' to emerge in his Ireland team as the new manager takes the team into the upcoming UEFA Nations League campaign.

The Icelandic coach was in Dublin to announce his first squad for the upcoming double-header against England and Greece at the Aviva Stadium, and while there were no real surprises in the 23-man selection, there was a first call-up for Leicester City’s Kasey McAteer.

Otherwise, it is very much normal service resumed with 13 of the 23 playing in the Premier League, with three more in top flight leagues elsewhere.

The remaining seven were plucked from the Championship, including the return of Jasyon Molumby and Callum Robinson, while Josh Cullen’s absence is the main change from recent squads.

The Burnley man is ruled out of his first international window since 2020 having missed his club game last weekend and not be fit enough to feature in the two Ireland games.

Shane Duffy, Michael Obafemi and Jamie McGrath are other squad regulars who have missed out, with the new manager keen to create real competition for places.

As for the gamechanger, the reticent Hallgrimsson was not specifying whether he was referring to a goalscoring centre-forward, a playmaking number 10, a commanding and influencing central defender, or even the ‘out of context’ b*****d in the middle of the park.

"It was taken a little bit out of context," said Hallgrimsson, regarding the previous profanity. "But I still like the sentiment.

"We have so many players at the similar level, all of them have nice characters etc. But sometimes you want players on the pitch that will make the opponents feel uncomfortable, and that is what I meant.

"But it is more the fact that I think we have a lot of players that