Robbie Keane will miss Ireland's friendlies against England on May 29th and Georgia on June 2nd due to commitments to LA Galaxy. He will be available for the World Cup qualifier against the Faroe Islands on June 7th and the friendly against Spain at Yankee Stadium June 11th.
RTÉ say that Keane was eager to play in the games but because they were not on recognised FIFA international dates, LA Galaxy did not have to release him.
Quoted on LAGalaxy.com, Galaxy coach, Bruce Arena says Robbie Keane is an important member of their team and they are simply following FIFA rules.
We’re following FIFA rules. Robbie is an important member of our team, he’s missed half the games in the league. These games are important, we’re the ones that pay him and he’ll be for the important games for Ireland. We wish that we could let him go for the whole [camp], but that’s not the way that it works.
Ireland is very professional. They understand completely. They understand our issues and we all understand what the FIFA rules are and we're following them.
Picture credit: David Maher / SPORTSFILE
