Denise O’Sullivan set to miss clash with the Netherlands

Ireland’s World Cup qualifying campaign began with a narrow 1:2 loss to France, and the challenge does not get any easier with the Netherlands next on the schedule. To make matters worse, they will be without influential midfielder Denise O’Sullivan, who has picked up a knee injury.

The injury occurred during a challenge in the first half of the match against France, though O'Sullivan, 32, continued playing the rest of the game and nearly scored a stoppage-time equaliser. Ireland manager Carla Ward confirmed on Friday that O'Sullivan has returned to Liverpool for treatment, ruling her out of the next match against the Netherlands. 

O'Sullivan’s absence marks her first competitive international match missed since 2024, when she was unavailable for European Championship qualifiers against Sweden.