Bristol City defender Greg Cunningham gets late Republic of Ireland call

Bristol City defender Greg Cunningham has been called into the Republic of Ireland squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Sweden and Austria (Getty Images)

Bristol City defender Greg Cunningham has been called into the Republic of Ireland squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Sweden and Austria.

The 22-year-old, who was first capped at senior level by Giovanni Trapattoni during his time at Manchester City, has been drafted in as cover with Stephen Kelly having withdrawn for family reasons and with Marc Wilson nursing an ankle problem.

A spokesman for the Football Association of Ireland said: “Greg Cunningham has been called up the Irish squad to face Sweden this Friday and Austria on Tuesday.”