Republic boss Brian Kerr has described the loss of the Roy Keane for next month's critical World Cup qualifier against Switzerland as "a blow." Keane, who broke a bone in his foot against Liverpool, will be out the next eight weeks and sees him miss Ireland's last qualifying match on October 12.
"I'm disappointed to hear about Roy's injury," said Kerr. "The nature of it indicates he will be unavailable.
"Roy's loss would be a blow, and I know he will be disappointed as well."
Kerr said that the Republic always had plans in place in case of such eventualities.
"We have prepared for the loss of players throughout this campaign, and our focus remains on winning our next two games."
Should Ireland clinch a play-off place, it is likely Keane will also miss what would be a home-and-away double-header in November.
There is even the prospect Keane may have played the last game for his country should the Republic fail to make the play-offs, or next summer's finals in Germany.
MMIX
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Match of the Day - Post-match interviews