Former Town boss Mick McCarthy, now in charge of the Republic of Ireland, says Blues striker Will Keane will be out for six weeks with the hamstring injury he suffered at Wigan last Saturday and won’t be available for his side's March internationals.
Keane has recently opted to switch international allegiance to Ireland, where his father was born, having played for England at various youth levels.
"That was a straightforward one,” McCarthy told RTE when asked about the progress of Keane's qualification ahead of the March European Championship qualifiers against Gibraltar and Georgia.
"I rang him up, [he said] ‘Yeah, I’d love to’, he’s started the process [of transferring] and he is in that process now, and he’s sadly out injured. He got injured on Saturday and is out for six weeks.
"He was straightforward in going ahead with the process. Look, he is only 26 and is still a young man but has been blighted by injury and is sadly injured again. I’ve seen him play twice for Ipswich, and he played very well.”
Yesterday, current Town boss Paul Lambert said the club should have a better idea of the extend of Keane’s injury before the weekend.
Keane’s absence will be a big blow for the Blues with the former Manchester United youngster having been in impressive form with his penalty at Wigan his third goal for Town.