Copyright irishmirror
Heimir Hallgrímsson has hailed the timely return to fitness and form of striker Troy Parrott. With Evan Ferguson a major doubt for the World Cup qualifiers against Portugal and Hungary, despite his inclusion in the squad for those two games, Parrott is likely to spearhead Ireland’s attack. And his performances before and after the injury that ruled him out of Ireland’s first two games against Hungary and Armenia have delighted Hallgrímsson . The loss of Ferguson would be a huge blow, considering he has scored three goals in the four qualifiers to date. Hallgrímsson said: “It was unlucky for us to miss him [Parrott] at the beginning of this campaign. He was absolutely flying. “It was a big shame for us, but also for him, he was top scorer in Europe in September before he got injured. “He is finding his form again, I have seen all his minutes and he is finding his form again. He is missing a few penalties, but he is still scoring goals. “He is always a threat, opening spaces for others. It is good that we have him coming in strong now when Evan is doubtful.” Hallgrímsson will have to once again do without the attacking threat of Sammie Szmodics, who hasn’t played since the opening day draw with Hungary. Szmodics’ withdrawal from the Armenia game a few days later, and from the squad last month, drew plenty of criticism online. However, it later emerged that he had to undergo surgery to cure a knee problem that had been bothering him for some time. Szmodics hit back at the hate messages when he provided an update on his operation - and Hallgrímsson gave his full backing to the Ipswich Town man. “I think people just assume something and it’s easy to put it on social media. I’m not there, I didn’t read the criticism, I get information from Kieran [Crowley - media officer] about these things,” said the Ireland manager. “But he has always been honest with me about these things. When he didn’t travel to Armenia we sat for a long time and spoke. “He was sure he couldn’t play, so it was not worth it to take him there, and that’s both talking to the medical team and talking to the player himself. “The same when he has been carrying injuries and it has been tough for him, and that’s why he isn’t playing on a regular basis for Ipswich. “They have been playing him and overloading him, maybe, at times, but he has always been honest with me and I believe him 100 percent when he says he is not fit. “He would play for us every time if he would be fit.” One player that he is unlikely to see playing in the green jersey is Everton’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. He is focused on winning an England cap. “I’ve spoken to him. We would be interested, but obviously he is focused on England at the moment,” said Hallgrímsson. There was disappointment for Killian Phillips, the St Mirren midfielder who came off the bench in the away defeat to Armenia. Hallgrímsson insisted, however, that his exclusion wasn’t down to his struggle to make an impact when he came off the bench in Yerevan. “It was collectively bad. It wasn’t one player or two players that played bad. It doesn’t happen often,” he said. “After that game we had 11 players or 10 players playing way below what they normally can. “It’s not often that happens. It was not one or two players to blame. And we never look at it that way. “We win together, we lose together. That’s a saying you have probably heard a million times. “It’s just others coming into the frame. You grab your opportunities or you don’t. That’s the name of this game.” Click here to sign up to our soccer newsletter, bringing you the top stories and biggest headlines from the League of Ireland and beyond
