Leeds United striker Patrick Bamford is keen on switching his international allegiance to Republic of Ireland.
The 25-year-old is expected to swap, according to the Independent.ie.
Bamford represented Ireland U18’s once as a youngster before swapping to England of whom he played for at U18, U19 and U20 level. He is eligible to play for Ireland through his grandparents.
The former Chelsea striker moved to Leeds United from Middlesbrough last summer for a fee believed to be in the region of £7 million. He has since scored six goals for Marcelo Bielsa’s promotion chasing side.
Ireland manager, Mick McCarthy, has said, as per Independent.ie: “My last contact with him was on Saturday morning..they won Friday night.”
“I congratulated him on his goals. The one-two at the edge of the box was a sublime finish and I asked him if he still wanted to continue to join us and he said ‘yes’. I’m hoping to meet him. I haven’t given up on it at all.”
“If he does, it’s going to be June now because we’re not going to get it for these games. I’ve made it clear to him, and I would hope to see him ASAP. I asked him the question ‘Do you still want to join us?’ – ‘Yes’ was the answer. So it was a matter of meeting him. I stressed to him if he wants to be involved in June, we need to get it done as quickly as possible.”
