Republic of Ireland squad: Captain Katie McCabe rested for USA friendlies

Republic of Ireland captain Katie McCabe has been rested for the Republic of Ireland’s two friendlies against the USA at the end of June.

A number of players will not make the trip to America, including McCabe, Aoife Mannion, Heather Payne and Leanne Kiernan.

Arsenal’s McCabe has been left out of the squad after helping her club win the Champions League before she came into camp for the Republic’s Nations League fixtures.

Jamie Finn, Lily Agg and Jess Ziu are long-term absentees, while Aoibheann Clancy will not travel after the passing of her mother, Siobhan.

There has been a recall for defender Hayley Nolan, who featured on the Republic’s last trip to the USA in April 2023, and midfielder Ellen Molloy has been rewarded for her good form with Wexford in the Women’s Premier Division.

The Irish will take on Emma Hayes’ side in Denver on 26 June and three days later in Cincinnati.

“When these games were first proposed to us we knew that we would be without certain players, but that opens the door for others to step up,” said head coach Carla Ward.

“We are building, camp by camp, so we are looking forward to getting together again and putting in some extra work that will stand to us moving forward.”

The matches will be used as preparation for the Republic’s Nations League promotion play-off with Belgium in October.

Ward’s side finished second in Group B2 behind Slovakia and missed out on automatic promotion on goal difference.

“The two games against USA are an opportunity for us to work together on a number of things – both on and off the pitch – as we build towards the Uefa Nations League Play-Off against Belgium in October,” added Ward.

“We will be coming up against the best team in women’s football, so we will have a plan for those games but it’s also important that we make the most out of this camp as a whole.”