Not the news Stephen Kenny would have wanted.
Four Irish squad members have been ruled out of the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Serbia and Luxembourg this afternoon, with Conor Coventry receiving his first senior international call-up.
The FAI have announced that Caomhín Kelleher, Kevin Long, Conor Hourihane, and Callum O'Dowda have all been ruled out of the fixtures next week due to injury, with a couple of those players likely to be huge losses.
Kelleher was set to make his international debut in Serbia thanks to Darren Randolph's absence, but he has been unable to recover from a recent abdominal tear in time for the game.
Conor Hourihane, who has been in stunning form for Swansea since his January move, misses out after picking up an injury in the club's loss to Cardiff City yesterday.
Callum O'Dowda was also forced off in Bristol City's fixture having only recently returned from a long-term injury, while Kevin Long is also carrying a knock.
Blackburn Rovers centre back Darragh Lenihan has been drafted in to provide some defensive cover, while there has also been first call-up for West Ham's Conor Coventry.
The midfielder was a key part of the Ireland U21 side under Stephen Kenny, putting in some excellent performances in a holding midfield role. The 20-year old has not seen much playing time at first team level this season, making only one League Cup appearance.
The Ireland squad met up in Manchester earlier today, with the team set to train at Manchester City's training facilities before travelling to Belgrade for Wednesday's crucial fixture.
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