O'Shea, McClean & Westwood Named In Ireland Squad For Euro 2012

Giovanni Trappattoni today announced his squad for the forthcoming European Championships held in Poland & Ukraine, despite the final squad lists not having to be named for another two weeks, and there was great news for Sunderland trio John O'Shea, Kieren Westwood and most notably James McClean who have all made the 23-man squad.

We predicted McClean's inclusion in the squad back in January you may remember, but it wasn't long after that when Trappattoni told newspaper reporters he liked the look of McClean, but this tournament has come too soon for the former Derry City winger. Only last week Trappattoni changed his mind it seems, stating that McClean was "90-99% certain of going".

Since then there's been a rise nothing short of meteoric for the 23-year old, with a rapid rise to not only becoming a staple of our side, but a full international for Ireland after he made his debut as a substitute against the Czech Republic back in February.

At that moment, McClean had truly arrived, entering the field to a standing ovation from the home fans, near enough cementing his place in the squad. Today, the dream became a reality for him.

Also in the squad are John O'Shea, who has been a regular for the side for years, as is Shay Given's regular understudy, Kieren Westwood.

The full squad list is: Shay Given, Kieren Westwood, Richard Dunne, John O'Shea, Shaun St. Ledger, Darren O'Dea, Stephen Ward, Stephen Kelly, Keith Fahey, Kevin Foley, Glen Whelan, Darron Gibson, James McClean, Keith Andrews, Damien Duff, Stephen Hunt, Robbie Keane, Shane Long, Kevin Doyle, Jonathan Walters, Simon Cox, David Forde.

Congratulations to all three, we'll be rooting for you!