Republic of Ireland face testing Nations League window with Kosovo, Israel and Austria

Republic of Ireland begin their Nations League campaign with an away match against Kosovo in Pristina on Thursday, opening a four-game international window that also includes two fixtures against Israel and a home game with Austria.

The games are the first competitive matches for Heimir Hallgrimsson's side since their penalty shootout defeat by the Czech Republic in Prague in March that cost them a place at this summer's World Cup; they have played four friendlies since, beating Grenada and Qatar and drawing with North Macedonia and Canada. The schedule is a compressed, new-look international window with four games in 12 days and represents a return to a more familiar squad after summer experimentation.

Hallgrimsson named a 26-man squad to cope with the extended window and will be without captain Nathan Collins because of a calf injury; Collins has been first-choice when fit to marshal the back three. Jack Taylor and Mikey Johnston join long-term absentees Evan Ferguson and Josh Cullen, while Oisin McEntee missed out through injury. The manager confirmed Jimmy Dunne, Bosun Lawal and Owen Elding are nursing injuries, QPR's Harvey Vale and Hibernian's Jamie McGrath were injured in warm-ups and played no part, and experienced duo Seamus Coleman and Robbie Brady were not considered because they are without clubs.

Several players arrive into the squad on the back of strong club form, most notably Troy Parrott, who scored a match-winning substitute goal for Real Betis against Real Madrid earlier this month, followed by a winning goal on his Champions League debut in a 3-2 victory at Lille and an assist against Getafe; he has established himself as the Republic's first-choice striker. Hull City's John Egan is described as a mainstay for the Tigers in their positive start to life back in the Premier League and is pushing to start with Collins absent, while Swansea's Adam Idah has three goals and an assist in eight Championship games.

Hallgrimsson stressed the Nations League's implications for Euro 2028 seeding and qualification, outlining the promotion and play-off scenarios: finishing top of the group earns promotion to League A; second place produces a play-off with a third-placed League A team to try to win promotion; third place keeps the Republic in League B; and bottom place would require a play-off against a second-placed League C side that could result in relegation. He noted the seeding consequences for the Euro 2028 qualifiers and said, "Our seeding for the Euros depends on the Nations League"; he added, "League A will mean better opponents and would be better financially for FAI [Football Association of Ireland] and there is an escape route to the Euros from the Nations League, so lots of reasons we want to do really well in these Nations League matches."

Kosovo's build-up has been disrupted by the abrupt international retirement of captain Amir Rrahmanhi, a Napoli defender who is 32 and has won 66 caps over 10 years; Rrahmanhi announced his decision in a scathing Instagram statement accusing the association of "constant, co-ordinated attacks." Franco Foda has given a first call-up to Bayern Munich youngster Erblin Osmani, who chose to represent Kosovo earlier this month and became Bayern's second youngest ever Bundesliga player at 16 years and 306 days when he appeared in a 4-0 win over Union Berlin earlier this year; Kosovo's ambassador to Germany, Faruk Ajeti, posted on social media to confirm Osmani will play after presenting him with his Kosovo passport.

The two fixtures against Israel will be played at neutral venues, with Israel's designated 'home' game in Hungary on 27 September and the reverse fixture in Serbia on 4 October; the FAI confirmed the 'home' tie will be played behind closed doors and that no tickets will be made available for Irish fans for the 'away' game. Hallgrimsson said he had spoken to players individually about the prospect of facing Israel and that "none of us feel comfortable playing in these games." UEFA rejected a request to keep Republic of Ireland and Israel separate, according to the FAI, and the team's friendly win over Qatar in Dublin in April was twice briefly disrupted by fans protesting the upcoming fixtures with Israel.

Republic of Ireland's home game against Austria will be held at the Aviva Stadium and Austria will be without Marko Arnautovic, who retired from international football after the World Cup exit, David Alaba, who is omitted as he is currently without a club after leaving Real Madrid, and Marcel Sabitzer, who is taking a break from the national team for the Nations League; former Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick has chosen to use the Nations League to introduce the next generation for Austria.

Ireland's immediate schedule is clear: the group opens with Kosovo in Pristina on Thursday, followed by Israel in Hungary on 27 September, a home fixture against Austria at the Aviva Stadium between the Israel games, and the reverse trip to play Israel in Serbia on 4 October.