John Joe Patrick Finn holds face-to-face talks with Ireland boss in France
John Joe Patrick Finn met Heimir Hallgrimsson for face-to-face talks in France over the weekend to discuss his international ambitions. And the much-hyped Stade Reims ace could come into the reckoning for Ireland's friendlies against Senegal and Luxembourg in June.
Midfielder Finn has been called into Ireland U21 squads in the past but remains uncapped at that level, but did feature in two U19 friendlies against Sweden in 2021.
The former Real Madrid academy prospect was born and reared in Spain to an Irish father and mother from Cameroon. But Finn, who also played for La Liga outfit Getafe, is on record as saying he wants to represent the Boys in Green at senior level.
Hallgrimsson met Finn in the south of France on Sunday, having travelled over to see Stade Reims playing away to Montpellier. Unfortunately for Hallgrimsson, Finn was an unused sub in the scoreless draw but the Ireland boss still met up with the 21-year-old for talks.
Hallgrimsson was on a whistlestop tour of Europe last week, and slotted in meetings with three more Ireland players. While in France, the Icelander also saw Andrew Omobamidele play in Strasbourg's 3-1 win over St Étienne on Saturday.
And in Holland, Hallgrimsson watched Anselmo García MacNulty in PEC Zwolle's 4-0 defeat to Feyenoord on Friday, and also caught up with AZ Alkmaar's Troy Parrott
Yesterday, Hallgrimsson revealed he is planning to leave the Championship players out of June's two friendlies. With the Championship drawing to a close this weekend, the Ireland boss feels it is counterproductive to pitch players who are on holiday mode back into action a month later.
Two additional low-key friendlies in May - primarily for those Championship players - have fallen through, so Hallgrimsson doesn't want to run the risk of injury ahead of the World Cup campaign in the autumn. And that's why the door will be left open to others - with the likes of Finn and League of Ireland players potentially on the radar.
Hallgrimsson said yesterday: 'When it comes to June, we can play better with match fit players. We're thinking about September, October and November.
'We would like to limit the number of Championship players that are finishing this week or next week. We want to give them extended time off because we need everyone fresh for September, everything is about September, October, November.
"To split their holiday in half, there is always more risk of injuries when you stop-start.
Hallgrimsson added: 'We had a really good feeling after the March camp and I felt it was a squad we can build on. By having some of them half-fit in June, it can scramble that feeling.'
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