Celtic duo Mikey Johnston and Liam Scales have been named in Stephen Kenny’s Ireland team for this evening’s game against Gibraltar. The Irish National Team are in Faro, Portugal for their European Qualifier.
Ireland won’t make it out the group but they will still have aspirations to get to Germany next summer. In a strange twist of fate, Ireland need to lose to the Netherlands next month to ensure that they’ll have a play-off chance for the tournament next summer.
STARTING XI | Gibraltar v Ireland
Mikey Johnston comes in to start as well as Jamie McGrath and Ryan Manning as Evan Ferguson starts again up front 🇮🇪
Kick-off is at 7.45pm with over 3,000 Irish supporters expected 💚 pic.twitter.com/srk6o1bkkI
— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) October 16, 2023
Johnston is yet to make an appearance for Celtic this season after returning from injury over pre-season. The left-winger will be hoping that a performance on the international stage will capture the attention of Brendan Rodgers back at Celtic. Thus far, Rodgers has resisted giving Johnston a chance on the pitch, which is surprising as he was the manager that gave the attacker his debut back in 2017.
Scales, meanwhile, has been a revelation at Celtic this season. Initially when Scales returned from Aberdeen for pre-season, the belief was that the player would soon return to the North East in a permanent deal. After a win at Pittodrie, Rodgers was dealt defensive injuries, which resulted in Scales being kept. The defensive frailties afforded Scales the chance to start games, which he took by the scruff of the neck, earning the MOTM accolade for the win at Ibrox.
The game kicks off at 7:45pm.
