Ireland boss Martin O'Neill jokes about wait over Jack Grealish
Tuesday 8 September 2015 09:00, UK
Republic of Ireland boss Martin O'Neill has made light of the ongoing saga over Aston Villa's Jack Grealish and his international preference.
The 19-year-old midfielder has previously rejected opportunities to join up with the Republic senior squad having represented the country at age-group levels up to U21.
But England are hoping to persuade Grealish, born in Solihull, to pledge his international future to the country of his birth.
Grealish has kept both nations waiting on his decision, and England manager Roy Hodgson urged the player to make his mind up over the weekend.
Asked for his reaction to Hodgson's comments after Monday night's 1-0 Europen Qualifier win over Georgia, Ireland counterpart O'Neill was in a light-hearted frame of mind about the situation.
O'Neill said: "Well, that's encouraging, it's encouraging, anyway. Roy is not going to hang around, so well done Roy, putting the pressure on."
Hodgson appears to be growing impatient with Grealish though and has hinted he will not wait too much longer for the player to make his choice.
The England manager said on Sunday: "I'm not 100 per cent certain of what he is waiting for.
"I would like him to come out and say, 'I've thought about it, I've got the two possibilities and I'm opting for England' and then he will be available for selection.
"But he has been injured, to be fair, so he wouldn't have been selectable for any team during these September fixtures. Now maybe before the October fixtures he might make that decision."
