Martin O’Neill isn’t confident that Aston Villa’s Scott Hogan will play for Ireland.
Republic of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill
Republic of Ireland boss Martin O’Neill has revealed to the Irish Mirror that he has spoken to the agent of Aston Villa striker Scott Hogan about switching his international allegiance.
Hogan, 25, starred for Brentford earlier this season with 14 goals in 26 games, showing what he could still do in front of goal having spent 18 months out through injury.
The striker moved on in January, with Aston Villa paying a whopping £15million (London Evening Standard) to sign Hogan on deadline day – and so far, it’s a move that hasn’t really paid dividends for Villa boss Steve Bruce.
Hogan has picked up a couple of frustrating injuries and hasn’t looked totally comfortable when played with Jonathan Kodjia, but a full pre-season with Villa should help, and he ended the campaign with one goals and two assists in 13 appearances.
Aston Villa’s Scott Hogan and Reading’s Garath McCleary in action
Still, Hogan is not only being touted as a key player for next season, but he is also attracting interest in regards to his international future, with the Rochdale-born striker eligible to play for both England and the Republic of Ireland.
Ireland named their 37-man squad for a crucial World Cup 2018 qualifier against Austria on Monday, with manager Martin O’Neill including six strikers in his setup – though Hogan doesn’t feature.
Birmingham City’s Ryan Shotton in action with Aston Villa’s Scott Hogan
After months of speculation about Hogan switching to play for Ireland, manager O’Neill – formerly of Aston Villa – has told the Irish Mirror that he has spoken to the striker’s agent, but their conversation was ‘pretty short’.
O’Neill did add that he wasn’t necessarily hopeful that Hogan would decide to play for Ireland, meaning that the former Celtic boss could choose to give up on his hopes of Hogan switching his allegiance.
“No there’s no Scott Hogan, and I really can’t give you much of an update,” said O’Neill. “I’ve left it with his agent and the lad himself. I had a conversation with the agent, and it was pretty short at the time.
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