Newcastle's Finneran in as Umeh out of Republic of Ireland squad

Breaking news from the world of sport: Finneran in as Umeh out of Republic of Ireland squadImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Finneran has featured for the Republic of Ireland at under-17 and under-19 levelByLauren McCannBBC Sport NI JournalistPublished20 minutes agoNewcastle United midfielder Rory Finneran has received his first call-up to the Republic of Ireland senior squad for their friendly against Grenada. The 18-year-old has joined Heimir Hallgrimsson's squad in Murcia, Spain for their training camp before they face Grenada on Saturday at the Estadio Nueva Condomina . Finneran joined Newcastle from Blackburn Rovers in 2024 and has played for the Republic of Ireland at under-17 and under-19 level.

He is called into the squad following the withdrawals of Cardiff City defender Joel Bagan and Ipswich Town winger Kasey McAteer, who have both been ruled out through injury. Benfica attacker Jaden Umeh, who had received his first senior call-up, has been pulled out of the squad by his club. As this friendly falls outside of Fifa's international window, clubs are not obliged to release their players.

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Benfica under-19s face a must-win game against Famalicao on Saturday and want Umeh, who scored twice in a 6-2 win over UD Leiria on Sunday, available for that game as they aim to qualify for the Uefa Youth League. "Benfica are still fighting in their U19s to be in the Uefa Youth League," said Hallgrimsson. "The plan was for them to have secured that by now, but unfortunately, results this weekend didn't go their way, so Jaden still has one more game to play.

"We knew beforehand that this was a possibility, even if it was unlikely. "It is unlucky for him that the results went that way, as we were looking forward to working with him, but we understand the club's position and will have to wait for a future window to bring him into the environment.

The story has climbed to the top of the sports agenda, with fans and analysts following closely.