Leanne Kiernan out of Ireland's World Cup play-off

Leanne Kiernan is out of the Republic of Ireland's World Cup play-off in October due to an ankle injury she sustained during Liverpool's Women's Super League win against Chelsea on Sunday.

The striker went off in the second half of the Reds' impressive 2-1 win against the reigning champions, with a subsequent scan revealing she is facing a long stint on the sidelines.

Liverpool have confirmed that Kiernan may require surgery and is set to miss several months.

Ireland will play either Scotland or Austria in a massive play-off game on 11 October.

"It's obviously really disappointing for Leanne and the rest of the squad because she had a terrific pre-season and has been in great shape," said Liverpool manager Matt Beard.

"But these things happen in football, we have a squad to deal with these things and excellent medical staff to get Leanne back in great shape when she’s ready."

In a short statement Kiernan thanked fans for the support she's received, adding: "Thank you to all the fans who reached out to me, your support means a lot. I’m looking forward to getting back out there as soon as I can. See you soon."

Follow the Republic of Ireland v Israel in their UEFA Under-21 European Championship play-off this Friday (KO 7pm) via our liveblog on RTÉ.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app, or watch live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player

Follow the Republic of Ireland v Scotland this Saturday (kick-off 7.45pm) via our live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app, watch live on RTÉ 2 and the RTÉ Player, or listen to national radio commentary on RTÉ Radio 1

Listen to the RTÉ Soccer podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.