Martin O'Neill has revealed the ‘devastation’ felt by Republic of Ireland defender Richard Dunne after seeing his World Cup dreams shattered by Thierry Henry's handball.
Villa boss O'Neill is to sit down with Dunne to find out if he is in the right frame of mind to play into Saturday's Barclay's Premier League clash at Burnley.
Dunne sat out training at Bodymoor Heath today after travelling back from Paris - the scene of his country's heartbreak against France in the play-off second leg meeting.
O'Neill said: ‘Richard is very, very disappointed. He is pretty frustrated obviously with what happened and it is a real shame because Ireland were in a position to at least take the game to penalty kicks.
‘It has been a devastating experience for Richard and I particularly feel for the experienced players in the side - the Dunnes, Givens, Duffs, Kilbanes and Keanes - more than the younger boys.
‘It is a big blow to them. He didn't train today and I'm not surprised.
'He has had two very heavy games, particularly the match on Wednesday, and then you are hit by the major blow of not making it to the World Cup.
‘Let me put it this way, he won't get over it overnight. I will sit down with him if we get an opportunity to see how he is feeling.
‘Of course, disappointment can be overcome but I will speak to him and see how he feels (about playing on Saturday)’.
