Former Ireland player Shane Long has admitted that if his son ever has to choose between Ireland and England, he will not force him to pick a side, unlike the situations faced by Declan Rice and Jack Grealish.
Rice and Grealish both represented Ireland at different stages but ultimately decided to declare for their birth country, England.
To make matters worse for Irish fans, Rice and Grealish faced Ireland in Dublin last September and ironically both scored in England's 2-0 win. They were met with boos from the home crowd during the game.
Long, a proud Irishman who earned 88 caps for his country, now has a son born in England. This raises the possibility that his son may one day have to choose between representing Ireland or England.
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“It is tough. Playing for your country in Ireland is such a great honour. When you see players not sure if they want to do it, I think it's hard for the Irish people to accept that.
"But then I put myself on the other side. My son was born in England; he likes football; he might have to make that decision. I’m not saying he will be a professional footballer or anything, but if that decision comes his way, I’d just say, ‘Look, you’re English or Irish, and just stick with that.’”
However, Long made it clear that he would not allow his son to switch allegiances between countries, as Rice and Grealish did.
“I wouldn’t put pressure on that. Obviously, he’s born in England, and all his friends are English. I still instill in him to be proud of his Irish connection. But I can’t see myself following England down the line or anything like that!” he added.
“But I’d make sure that he wouldn’t jump from England to Ireland or back to England or anything like that.”