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18th October 2025
12:40pm BST
Ireland fans were surprised to see Sammie Szmodics in Ipswich’s starting XI to face Middlesbrough on Friday night having recently withdrawn from the national team due to injury.
Szmodics played 67 minutes in Ipswich’s 2-1 defeat in the Championship, with eyebrows already raised before the international break about his commitment to Ireland.
He played 86 minutes in the East Anglia derby against Norwich on October 6th, but withdrew from the Ireland squad just 24 hours later.
Ireland lost 1-0 in Portugal in their World Cup qualifier, before a 1-0 win over Armenia on Tuesday at the Aviva Stadium, leaving their World Cup hopes still intact but hanging by a thread.
Fans took to social media on Friday night to criticise the 30-year-old, who has 10 caps for Ireland, and slammed him for a perceived lack of commitment to the national team.
One said: “Szmodics available again for Ipswich tonight. That should be the last of him in an Ireland jersey. He has treated the privilege of playing for us with utter contempt.”
Another said: “Should be the end of Szmodics in an Irish shirt.”
Irish Independent journalist Daniel McDonnell said: “Szmodics in the photo in a reporting for duty style pose probably not the best pic for Irish sensitivities.”
And a fourth said: “Genuinely hope we never see Szmodics in an Ireland shirt again.”
Fans also referenced quotes from Szmodics in 2024, where he said: “We have to start winning games… I’ll play anywhere for this country, for my country I’ll play anywhere.”
Ireland host Portugal and travel to Hungary in their final World Cup qualifiers in November.
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