Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy has confirmed Seamus Coleman will start as captain for Saturday’s Euro 2020 qualifier with Gibraltar.
McCarthy has a conundrum to fit in Coleman and Matt Doherty who has been in sensational form in the Premier League.
But the Ireland boss confirmed at his pre-match press conference that Coleman will start the game.
It remains to be seen if Doherty will start in a more forward role, with McCarthy set to inform the players of his selection later tonight before it is announced around an hour before kick-off at the Victoria Stadium tomorrow.
McCarthy said: "The players will know [the starting team] certainly before tomorrow. I'll let them know in good time.
With less than 24 hours to start of Ireland’s Euro 2020 qualifying campaign, @Corktod reports from Gibraltar where manager Mick McCarthy is looking to start his second time in charge with three points pic.twitter.com/sbgyQY1wl4
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) March 22, 2019
"The butterflies are there already. It's getting closer and closer. I'm glad I have that feeling because if I lose that then there would be something wrong. That has been with me from the first game I ever played."
Ireland trained on the artificial surface in a windswept Gibraltar on Fridayr as a severe weather warning was issued.
However, McCarthy was not fazed by the prospect of strong winds.
He said: "You are aware where we play our football? We don't play in ideal conditions all the time in terms of weather, bearing in mind that I started at Barnsley and been at Sunderland and been to Glasgow.
"That's nothing that concerns me, I can't do anything about that. It is what it is. We'll just get on with it."
We need your consent to load this Facebook contentWe use Facebook to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Follow Gibraltar v Republic of Ireland (kick-off 5pm) with our live blog on RTÉ Sport Online or the RTÉ News Now app, watch live on RTÉ2 or listen live on RTÉ Radio 1's Saturday Sport
