Sligo’s Johnny Kenny included in Republic of Ireland Under 21 squad

The young Boys in Green will meet up on Tuesday before heading to the Croatian capital of Zagreb.

They face the hosts on Friday, June 7 (kick-off 5pm Irish time) before turning their attentions to England Under-20s on Tuesday, June 11 (kick-off 3pm Irish time).

Kenny, on loan at Shamrock Rovers from Celtic, has been in impressive form this season with eight goals in 17 appearances.

Back in May, Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley hyped up the former Sligo Rovers striker: “Right now he is the in-form striker in the league, no doubt about that but there’s so much more to come, his mentality. Last year helped him understand this place, how we play, what we demand and he’s a different animal,” says Bradley of the former Sligo Rovers player who has three years left on his deal with Celtic, a club he has yet to play for since a 2022 move from from the Bit O’Red.

“It’s been his mentality since he came back, I saw a real difference in him. Last year he was a bit lost – and that can happen when you get a big move. We talk about career sliding doors moments, sometimes it doesn’t fall your way.

“Last year he looked a bit lost in his head. Could he have played more games? Yes, but that’s down to me.

“This year he’s been a different animal, in training, his mentality around the place and on the pitch, when he’s like he is at the moment you wouldn’t like to play against him, he has a bit of everything.”

Shamrock Rovers agreed a loan deal with Celtic that ties him to Tallaght until the end of the 2024 season as Bradley batted away talk of a possible recall by the parent club. “He’s here, I will be chaining him to the gates,” Bradley joked.

The Republic of Ireland Under 21 squad is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Tiernan Brooks (Notts County), Killian Cahill (Brighton & Hove Albion), Josh Keeley (Tottenham Hotspur),

Defenders: James Abankwah (Udinese), Sam Curtis (Sheffield United), Anselmo Garcia MacNulty (PEC Zwolle), Bosun Lawal (Celtic), Alex Murphy (Newcastle United), Connor O’Brien (Accrington Stanley), Connor O’Riordan (Blackburn Rovers), Sean Roughan (Lincoln City)

Midfielders: Baba Adeeko (Wigan Athletic), Matt Healy (Royal Francs Borains), Joe Hodge (Wolves), Andrew Moran (Brighton & Hove Albion), Conan Noonan (Shamrock Rovers), Rocco Vata (Celtic)

Forwards: Sinclair Armstrong (QPR), Aidomo Emakhu (Millwall), Calum Kavanagh (Bradford City), Johnny Kenny (Shamrock Rovers, on loan from Celtic), Mark O’Mahony (Brighton & Hove Albion), Ollie O’Neill (Leyton Orient), Armstrong Oko-Flex (FC Zurich), Tony Springett (Norwich City),