Kevin Long and Josh Cullen drafted into Republic of Ireland squad

Burnley defender Kevin Long and former Under-21s skipper Josh Cullen have been drafted into the Republic of Ireland squad for the Euro 2020 qualifiers against Gibraltar and Georgia.

Long and West Ham midfielder Cullen, who is currently on loan at Charlton, have been called up by manager Mick McCarthy as replacements for injured duo Alan Browne and Ronan Curtis.

The Football Association of Ireland confirmed the news via its official Twitter account, saying: “Former #IRLU21 captain @JoshCullen has been called up to the Ireland senior squad for the first time.

“Defender @kevinlong28 has also been drafted in as injury rules out both @Alan_Browne & @RonanCurtis.”

McCarthy named his final 23-man party for the games in Gibraltar on March 23 and at the Aviva Stadium three days later on Thursday, but revealed that Browne and Curtis would both miss out.

Preston midfielder Browne has an ankle injury, while Portsmouth striker Curtis has undergone surgery to re-attach a fingertip after catching it in a door.