SOCCER:TWO OF Giovanni Trapattoni's most prominent regulars, Shay Given and Aiden McGeady, were receiving treatment at their clubs yesterday for injuries picked up over the weekend, it was confirmed last night.

With the squad due to assemble in Dublin this afternoon ahead of Saturday’s vital World Cup qualifier against Bulgaria, it is unclear at this stage when the pair will be fit to train, but assistant team manager Marco Tardelli was optimistic they will have recovered in time to play at Croke Park this weekend.

“We have (Steve) Finnan out,” said the former Italian international when asked for an update on the availability of the Ireland players, “McGeady picked up a knock and Given has a problem with his shoulder. Both are undergoing treatment at their clubs but I’m sure that they will be fit.”

Both men played for the full 90 minutes of their respective clubs’ games over the weekend, suggesting the problems should not be too serious. The loss of either, however, would be a major blow ahead of what is undoubtedly the biggest game of the Trapattoni era to date.

For the Bulgarians, of course, the news is far worse with star striker Dimitar Berbatov definitely out of the Dublin game due to the ankle injury he sustained in Manchester United’s surprise 2-0 defeat by Fulham on Saturday.

The striker’s absence will be seen as a significant boost to Ireland’s chances of securing a win that would go a long way towards ending the visitors’ chances of finishing in the qualifying group’s top two but, rather diplomatically, Tardelli insisted it is a regrettable development from the point of view of the game itself.

“I’m not happy that he is injured,” he insisted. “I would prefer to play against Berbatov because football is important for young people and I would prefer if Bulgaria had their full team, if there weren’t any injuries.

“For us, I think we are a good team and it is possible for us to win against Bulgaria, whether they are with or without Berbatov.

“Yes, he is a big player – not the best player in the world because, for me, ahead of him are the likes of Ronaldo and (Wayne) Rooney – but he is a very good player. But I’m not happy that he is injured.”

Tardelli expressed no real surprise at Marcello Lippi’s decision to omit a couple of his out-of-form stars from the squad for Italy’s games away to Montenegro and then, tomorrow week, at home to Ireland in Bari.

“I think Luca Toni and (Alberto) Gilardino were not in good shape and the new players are very young, very strong physically and I think it’s better for Italy (that they have been called up).

“I’m very happy that it will be a good match against Italy,” he added, “but now we think about Bulgaria because it is a most important game.”

FAI chief executive John Delaney, meanwhile, said the association was weighing up the options in relation to next week’s journey by the Ireland team to Bari with the timing of the proposed Monday afternoon flight potentially threatened by industrial action at Dublin airport.

“We have at least two options available to us if Monday turns into a difficulty,” he said. “One would be going Tuesday from Dublin and one would be going Sunday, probably from Belfast. We’ll monitor events.

“We’re in constant contact with SIPTU and with the Dublin Airport Authority and they’re keeping us advised. To be fair, the Bulgarians are coming in to us on Friday, so going out the day before might be the preferred way of doing it if there’s a problem on Monday, but that may not come to pass either. I think we have until midweek to make up our minds.”

Bulgaria boss Stanimir Stoilov insists the loss of Berbatov for Saturday’s game will not fatally undermine his side’s chances of getting a result on Saturday night. “Unfortunately, we’ve lost our most important players,” said Stoilov, who has also been deprived of winger Martin Petrov and defender Alexandar Tunchev. “But this is the reality, we can’t change it and we have to do everything possible to win against Ireland,”

The recently appointed coach confirmed that Berbatov is to be replaced by Hertha Berlin striker Valeri Domovchiyski, while Aston Villa midfielder Stilian Petrov will now captain the side on Saturday and next Wednesday against Cyprus in Sofia.

“We know it’s an extremely important match for us,” he said. “Ireland are a well-organised team and I want to see us being brave in attack.

“I did a lot of calculations and I know we can qualify even if we lose in Ireland but this is the worst scenario and I’m not considering such an outcome.”