Conor Coventry has helped Republic of Ireland Under 21s to qualify for the Toulon Tournament semi-finals for the first time in their history.
Having played the full 90 minutes in a 4-1 win against China U23 and 0-0 draw with Mexico U22, Coventry came on as a half time substitute to help secure a 1-0 win against Bahrain U23.
This saw them top their group ahead of Mexico on goal difference, though they would have progressed even if Mexico had scored the two goals needed to overtake them as they would have topped the rankings of second-placed teams.
Ireland will now face a prolific Brazil U22 side who have had two 4-0 wins and a 5-0 victory against Guatemala U23, France U18 and Qatar U23 respectively.
The Brazilians were by far the most dominant team in the group stages, but Ireland will go into the game with confidence as one of just three sides to navigate the group stages unbeaten.
Having been an integral part of Ireland’s campaign so far, it is expected that Coventry will start the semi-final with the hope of progressing to play either Japan or Mexico.
The 19-year-old midfielder will see this as another opportunity to impress and get himself into Manuel Pellegrini’s thinking back at West Ham, having made his first-team debut as a half-time substitute during this season’s 8-0 Carabao Cup win over Macclesfield Town.
