Bruce and McCann out of Northern Ireland clash with Portugal

Oct 13, 2012 5:45:00 PM

The Hull City defender and Peterborough United midfielder were both forced to withdraw from Michael O'Neill's squad ahead of the upcoming World Cup 2014 qualifier in Porto

Northern Ireland’s injury-stricken squad has been further weakened by the withdrawal of Alex Bruce and Grant McCann ahead of Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier against Portugal.

Hull defender Bruce was due to make his Northern Ireland debut after transferring his allegiance from the Republic of Ireland, but a groin strain has forced him to return home.

Meanwhile, McCann has sustained a knee injury meaning he will also miss the meeting with the second-placed Portuguese in Group F.

Manager Michael O'Neill was already without the services of West Brom captain Chris Brunt and Derby’s Jamie Ward through injury.

Bruce’s Hull team-mate Joe Dudgeon, Newcastle’s Shane Ferguson, Burnley’s Martin Paterson and Hibernian’s James McPake have also all pulled out of the squad.

O’Neill has already drafted in Bradford’s Rory McArdle, Burnley’s Daniel Lafferty and Watford’s Lee Hodson, but will not be calling up additional replacements for Bruce and McCann.

Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200
Sign up to Paddy Power for £250 in free bets
Sign up today with Coral and get a £50 FREE bet - no strings attached!
Sign up today with BetVictor and get a £25 FREE BET!

play

open

Inside Goal.Com

BVB's rise from the abyss to European contenders
BVB have recovered from teetering on the edge of bankruptcy to take their place on Europe's grandest stage, humbling their opponents on Saturday, Bayern Munich, along the way
Transfer Talk: Mourinho wants six new signings
Get your daily dose of all the speculation from around the globe as clubs cast their eye towards summer reinforcements
Soulless EPL must face up to grim reality
After a season marred by controversy and a failure of its top teams to put up a credible Champions League challenge, the world's supposed best league is falling behind
Bayern's jinx - CL final referee Nicola Rizzoli
Goal takes a look at the career of the Italian arbiter to date following Uefa's decision to appoint the 41-year-old for Saturday's showpiece at Wembley
Cartoon: Injured Gotze ready to 'do a Terry'
Goal.com cartoonist Omar Momani gives us his unique take on the football news of the day