Republic of Ireland boss Stephen Kenny has explained the call-up for Celtic youngster Lee O’Connor this afternoon.
The right-back has spent the season on loan with League Two side Tranmere Rovers. O’Connor managed an impressive campaign that saw him reap 41 appearances that would end with defeat in the playoffs yesterday [Transfermarkt].
His reward? An international call-up with Ireland for their June fixtures against Andorra and Hungary. Manager Stephen Kenny has surprisingly picked youngsters such as O’Connor, St Mirren’s Jamie McGrath, Shamrock Rovers midfielder Daniel Mandroiu, and Norwich defender Andrew Omobamidele. It’s an extremely youthful squad – a brave move for a manager with no wins in 11 games.
And speaking after announcing his squad, Kenny has moved to explain his decisions. As quoted by the Irish Independent, Kenny said: “Some might feel it’s too much change too quickly and I understand that viewpoint, but in my opinion, that is necessary because we’ve had absolutely no development for about eight or nine years.
“We’ve had one player through in nine years and nobody really looking at that, and then a huge demographic between players (who are) 29 and 30 and 20 – and very little in between. We have a bigger vision for what we want to achieve going forward by integrating these players. Not all of them will become top-class international players, but a number of them will.
“We’ve got a lot of talent and we want to see it develop, we want to give it the opportunity to develop and we want to see the team triumph. That’s certainly what we want and we have a clear idea of how we want to do that.”
A major opportunity on the cards with Ireland for young Celtic defender
These comments must have O’Connor and his international teammates buzzing. With the likes of James McCarthy, Ciaran Clark, Jeff Hendrick, Enda Stevens and Alan Browne all out, it’s a massive opportunity for so many of them.
What Kenny is effectively saying here is that he wants to see who’s been developing. If there are signs of improvement in their game and if they stand out well in this camp, bigger opportunities lie ahead.
There’s a strong chance this isn’t a case of one call-up and you’re out. This looks like a chance for the likes of O’Connor and Saints’ McGrath to finally make their mark in international football. An opportunity to throw themselves into Kenny’s plans for the World Cup qualifiers in September.
Of course, this isn’t O’Connor’s first call-up to the senior squad. Several months after signing for Celtic in the summer of 2019, Mick McCarthy gave him his first taste of the senior ranks. He was handed his debut in a 3-1 friendly win against New Zealand, but opportunities afterward were non-existent.
Kenny, however, was previously manager of Ireland at under-21 level. O’Connor was a regular at that level under Kenny, so the first-team manager will know plenty about the Celtic man.
All it does, of course, is heighten the importance for him to play regularly next season. Going by Kenny’s comments, a big international opportunity could depend on it.
In other news, we look at the ruthless decision Eddie Howe must make to truly symbolise change at Celtic next season.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
