Republic of Ireland midfielder Denise O'Sullivan has been ruled out of Saturday night’s World Cup qualifier against the Netherlands in Utrecht.
O’Sullivan aggravated her right knee when making a challenge during the opening half of Tuesday’s 2-1 defeat to France at Tallaght Stadium. She played on and almost snatching an equaliser deep into stoppage time, but in the immediate aftermath of the game, boss Carla Ward admitted she was unsure if the Liverpool star would be able to go again this weekend.
Ward’s fears have proven well founded, with the head coach confirming this morning: "Denise has returned home to Liverpool with that knock on her knee, she won't be available tomorrow night.
"We have a squad that is well equipped to how we are going to play. Our approach won't change.
"When you lose someone of Denise’s quality, I say it all the time, she is world class, she really is, and she makes a huge difference for what we do. Naturally, that is a big loss. Everyone knows what we want to do and we will be prepared for that."
It's the first competitive game O'Sullivan has missed since she was ruled out of the Euros qualifiers against Sweden in 2024.
Ward insisted the decision to leave the Cork woman on for the rest of Tuesday's contest did not worsen the injury, adding: "That was my first question to the medical team. Would it have made a difference? No, is the answer. I haven't spoken to Liverpool. I think we'll leave that to the medical team."
'Naturally, that's a big loss' - Republic of Ireland manager Carla Ward confirms that Denise O'Sullivan is ruled out of tomorrow's qualifier against Netherlands in Utrecht pic.twitter.com/Cs4bjv318I
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) March 6, 2026
In better news, captain Katie McCabe is available after picking up a niggle when awkwardly sliding into a challenge on Elisa De Almeida, for which she was booked. That card means McCabe will walk a tightrope tomorrow night - another yellow means she'll miss the trip to Poland in April.
"Katie is fine, she is good, ready to go," said Ward.
"It was just when she slipped, her and De Almeida had that altercation just when they naturally slipped. It just caught her, but she's absolutely fine, 100%."
On McCabe's yellow card situation, the head coach added: "For me, it wasn't a booking. She slipped over.
The fourth's there, the lineswoman's there. It's a poor decision, but it's one that we have to get on with now.
"There's this illusion around Katie's discipline that's not a reality. I think she's a top pro and she knows what the game's all about."
Ward now has a big decision to make with regards to her midfield for the meeting against the world's number 11-ranked team at Stadion Galgenwaard. Around 13,000 tickets have been sold, with approximately 200 Irish fans making the trip. The Dutch opened their qualification campaign with a 2-2 draw against the Poles.
"When you lose someone of Denise's quality, I say it all the time, she's world-class, she really is, and she makes a huge difference to what we do," said Ward.
"I would put Denise in any team anywhere around the world, and I think she's difficult to replace. That's how highly I think of her. But, you know, we have a tight-knit squad, a prepared squad, a squad that everybody understands their roles, they look after each other, and whoever goes in there will know exactly what's expected."
Watch Netherlands v Republic of Ireland in World Cup qualifying on Saturday from 7.15pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on the RTÉ News App and on rte.ie/sport. Listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1.
