Republic of Ireland manager Eileen Gleeson has named her squad ahead of the Euro 2025 qualifier double-header with Sweden..
Ireland return to the Aviva Stadium on Friday, 31 May to host the Olympic runners-up and the sides will go at it again just four days later on Tuesday, 4 June in Stockholm for what will be the countries' 10th meeting overall at senior women's level.
Both Niamh Fahey and Heather Payne are unavailable for this squad due to Achilles injuries, while Chloe Mustaki, Tara O'Hanlon and Jamie Finn are continuing their recovery from long-term injuries.
Added to that, Gleeson and her backroom team will need to use sleep strategies to counteract jetlag for captain Katie McCabe, who will be just home from a pre-season trip to Australia with Arsenal.
"We knew this trip was coming, so we’ve been planning and there’s been a lot of communication with the club around recovery and sleep strategies for when she returns," said Gleeson.
"We planned for it. We’ve all spoken about the timing of it before. She’s there now but she’ll be back and joining us in the camp," she added.
"She'll come in a little bit later. We’ll allow her to have rest post the flight. She flies back into London Sunday so probably won’t join us until Tuesday.
"We’ve a very detailed recovery and sleep strategy. We’ve brought in sleep experts and worked with Arsenal on that. It was very detailed. We’ve been planning for it for a long time. We’ll prioritise sleep and rest off the flight."
Gleeson won't be able to call on the services of midfielder Sinead Farrelly, who retired three weeks ago after barely a year on the panel.
There is a first call-up for former U19 international midfielder Eva Mangan, who has impressed for Cork City in the SSE Airtricity Women's Premier Division this season.
"I've watched Eva throughout the years," said Gleeson. "We had her in some previous home-based sessions in a former role. Eva is a very competent player. For us, and as a developmental pathway going forward, it’s important for me that we develop the LOI and that we take care of players there and provide pathways as well.
"Eva’s been doing really well with Cork City and I would like to see her in our environment and see how she copes with the step up in intensity with the environment."
Ireland have lost their first two qualifiers from a difficult group, going down 1-0 away to France at the start of April and 2-0 to England at the Aviva Stadium four days later.
The Ireland squad begin preparations for the qualifiers at the FAI National Training Centre from 27 May.
FIXTURES
Ireland Squad
Goalkeepers: Courtney Brosnan (Everton), Grace Moloney (London City Lionesses), Sophie Whitehouse (Lewes).
Defenders: Jessie Stapleton (West Ham United), Diane Caldwell (FC Zurich), Louise Quinn (Birmingham City), Caitlin Hayes (Celtic), Anna Patten (Aston Villa), Aoife Mannion (Manchester United), Megan Campbell (London City Lionesses).
Midfielders: Katie McCabe (Arsenal), Denise O'Sullivan (North Carolina Courage), Megan Connolly (Bristol City), Ruesha Littlejohn (London City Lionesses), Tyler Toland (Blackburn Rovers), Lily Agg (Birmingham City), Jess Ziu (West Ham United), Lucy Quinn (Birmingham City), Erin McLaughlin (Peamount United), Eva Mangan (Cork City), Izzy Atkinson (Crystal Palace).
Forwards: Kyra Carusa (San Diego Wave), Leanne Kiernan (Liverpool), Emily Murphy (Wake Forest University), Abbie Larkin (Crystal Palace), Amber Barrett (Standard Liege)
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