Vera Pauw set to make some big calls for Ireland World Cup squad

Not long now. Republic of Ireland manager Vera Pauw broke the news to an extended panel of 31 players on Tuesday afternoon in UCD. Twenty-three of them are going to the World Cup, the three retained for training won’t know how to feel, but five players can only be devastated.

The FAI will release the squad line-up at 10am on Wednesday. Apparently, some established names have not made next month’s flight to Brisbane.

American-born recruits Sinead Farrelly and Marissa Sheva are certain to travel Down Under based on the fact they both arrive in to camp on Wednesday.

That means Sheva, at 26 years old, has come from nowhere to win three caps in 2023 against China and the USA (twice). The Washington Spirit forward is neither striker nor winger, more a hybrid athlete that Pauw tends to prefer. She ran varsity for Penn State, clocking a 1,500-metre personal best of 4:25.06 but she has been coming off the bench for Spirit this season in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

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Kyra Carusa and Amber Barrett have done enough to be included. Carusa was impressive against the US in April while Barrett bagged two goals against Zambia last Thursday so Sheva’s inclusion puts pressure on Leanne Kiernan and Abbie Larkin.

Either the Liverpool striker or the Shamrock Rovers teenager could be bumped to the reserve list, or left out entirely.

The three training players must be covered financially by the FAI, and not Fifa. The governing body pays the travel and accommodation costs for 23 players from all 32 nations.

Excluding Kiernan, considering the 24-year-old allayed fears about her fitness against Zambia, would be a hugely controversial decision given her natural ability as a finisher. However, Larkin represents the future of Irish football, with the 18-year-old making leaps in performance on every viewing.

If Heather Payne can be categorised as a right wing back, where she looks certain to start against Australia in the World Cup opener on July 20th, then five forwards could be named. However, there were suggestions last week that the Irish management wants to bring four goalkeepers.

Again, this would be a big call.

[ Ireland 3 Zambia 2 as it happened: International friendly ]

Arguably, only seven defenders will make the cut. That leaves one spot behind Louise Quinn, Niamh Fahey, Claire O’Riordan, Chloe Mustaki, Diane Caldwell and Áine O’Gorman, who are due to be picked on a mix of form and reputation.

Aoife Mannion and Megan Campbell are currently unfit. Campbell, who was recently released by Liverpool, even gave up her hotel room last week so Izzy Atkinson could join the camp. To lose one or both would be a big blow to the overall plan as it denies the use of Campbell’s long throw, which could be Ireland’s best chance of stealing a goal against Australia or Canada. Also, it probably forces Katie McCabe to play wing back in a back five. McCabe proved against Sweden last year that she is the team’s best chance of a long-range goal.

Mannion only recently had a brace removed from her knee following medial collateral ligament damage sustained at Manchester United training.

If Mannion and Campbell do not make it, Tara O’Hanlon, Harriet Scott and Hayley Nolan are the alternatives.

[ Republic of Ireland players will earn €28,000 from playing in World Cup ]

Midfield certainties are Megan Connolly, Denise O’Sullivan and Sinead Farrelly but there is plenty of room for Ciara Grant after her assured distribution in the second half against the Zambians. Ruesha Littlejohn struggled in the first half at Tallaght stadium, but so did everyone else. Along with Lily Agg, Littlejohn should make it.

There is a financial element to Pauw’s big calls as Fifa guaranteed that $30,000 (€27,400) in prize money goes directly into each player’s pocket. This fee rises if Ireland progress to the knockout stages, with World Cup winners receiving €250,000 each. The average salary for professionals at the tournament in Australia and New Zealand is €12,800.

Fifa will pay out $152 million (€139 million) in total, a huge increase from the $50 million for the 2019 tournament, which makes sense considering Fifa president Gianni Infantino announced record revenues of $7.6 billion (€6.93 million) for 2022. This allowed the organisation to pay Infantino a €630,000 annual bonus on top of his €3 million salary.

The FAI will bank $1.56 million (€1.4 million) if eliminated in the group stages but that rises to $4.29 million (€3.91 million) for the winning association.