Republic of Ireland captain Nathan Collins returns to the squad for Saturday’s match against Austria in Linz, describing his time away from the team during the recent Israel fixtures as “probably more stressful away from it than it might have been in it.”
Reflecting on the 3-0 win over Israel in Debrecen, Collins shared that he was celebrating the goals in his room, calling the result one of his best moments as an Irish fan. The 1-1 draw in Backa Topola that followed the victory in Hungary completed a challenging international window.
He praised the leadership of Dara O’Shea, who served as captain in his absence, noting that O’Shea was “unbelievable” in how he managed the pressure. Collins also observed that Gavin Bazunu, currently injured and replaced in the squad by Mark Travers, chose not to play against Israel, while head coach Heimir Hallgrímsson opted not to use Finn Azaz as a substitute in either game.
'I think they're ready to go to war for each other. They'd go through a brick wall for each other' Captain Nathan Collins believes the Republic of Ireland squad are closer than ever after strain of Israel fixtures 📺Watch Austria v Ireland live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player pic.twitter.com/xokTQzV7TA
— Post by @RTEsport on X
“I think we’re ready to go to war for each other. I think we will all go through a brick wall for each other. We want another game of football,” Collins said.
While Collins is expected to return to the starting side after playing the second half of Brentford’s recent loss against Brighton, veteran Séamus Coleman will not be considered for selection against Austria. Coleman has been participating in the 24-man squad in a “hybrid” role.
- Liam Scales
- Jayson Molumby
- Conor Coventry
- Adam Idah
- Ryan Manning
Hallgrímsson indicated that while he did not expect to include Coleman against Austria, he left the door open for the defender’s return for Tuesday’s match against Kosovo, noting, “On Tuesday, we don’t know the situation.” Austria, meanwhile, is managing a depleted roster, with manager Ralf Rangnick missing a host of key players including David Alaba, Maximilian Wober, Nikolas Veratschnig, Paul Wanner, Patrick Wimmer, Florian Grillitsch, Carney Chukwuemeka, Marco Grull, and the latest additions to the injury list, Xaver Schlager and Alexander Prass.
