Robbie Keane Hoping To Return For Republic Of Ireland

 

Republic of Ireland captain Robbie Keane is hoping to be fit in time to face Sweden in his side's opening match of the European Championship later this month. Keane was a major doubt for the whole tournament after suffering a thigh injury in training prior to Ireland's 2-1 loss to Belarus on Wednesday evening.

The LA Galaxy forward was named in Martin O'Neill's 23-man squad following the defeat in Cork. Keane now faces a race against time to be fit for Ireland's opening Group E match against Sweden on June 13.

He said “It's never nice when you get injured, certainly at this stage, but lucky for me it's not as bad as I first thought, I thought it was going to be a lot longer. They're saying a couple of weeks so that would get me back in for the Sweden game. If not then I'll definitely be ready for the second game. It's bad news but it could have been a lot worse”.

O'Neill's are due to face the well-fancied Belgians in Bordeaux on June 18 before taking on Antonio Conte's Italy in Lille on June 22. Ireland face an uphill task in France this summer, having been placed in the so-called 'Group of Death' along with Sweden, Belgium and Italy.