NEW REPUBLIC of Ireland women’s manager Vera Pauw says she will speak with Manchester City after leaving Tyler Toland out of her selection last night.
Toland was a surprise omission as Pauw’s era began with a 3-2 win over Ukraine at Tallaght Stadium.
The St Johnston woman signed for City from Sion Swifts and has already played competitively for the Blues.
However, Toland – who is Ireland’s youngest ever international – was not included by Pauw, who rang the changes as she took charge of the Girls in Green for the first time,
“I did not make my line-up on the basis of age,” Pauw said when asked in her post-match press conference if she had simply gone for experience.
“If you ask me who has the most caps, I don’t know. That is not something I look at.
“Tyler Toland did not play, but that was not because she is not experienced. There is something not going right for Tyler. She is not the player that she normally is.”
The Dutch coach has taken over from Colin Bell as Irish manager and intends to talk to Toland’s club bosses in the coming weeks.
Pauw suggested that she may visit Manchester City.
The Ireland manager said: “I look at the player. I see her play and it is not what you expect. I will go to Manchester City, together with a high performance person to talk with the management and the fitness coaches to see those programmes in line.”
Pauw said that City had ‘responded positively’. She said: “It isn’t that I‘m going to say what to do, it is that I want to talk to them.”