Green Machíne Exclusive: Aoife Mannion and others ‘in pipeline’ for Ireland in 2023 World Cup

Vera Pauw has revealed in an interview with the Green Machíne Podcast that Manchester United defender Aoife Mannion is could potentially be involved in Ireland’s 2023 World Cup adventure.

Both of the 27 year olds parents were born in Ireland and the former England underage international looks set to come on board with The Girls in Green. Mannion is still in the process of recovering from an ACL injury but is very much in the Irish managers mind as are a number of other potential recruits.

They have to be good players and of course Aoife Mannion is one of them, she is coming back from an ACL injury so we are hoping that she will be ready and we are dealing with her eligibility.

Pauw is keen to expand Ireland’s depth (Image: Irish Mirror)

Pauw explained that she things it is important any potential recruits have a strong connection with Ireland. Both the Irish men and women’s team has exercised the ‘Granny Rule’ to a high degree in the past and Pauw feels it is only appropriate if the player is the right fit.

After we qualified, suddenly there were lots putting their names in, we only use them if they have a strong relationship with Ireland.

She continued to explain that Mannion certainly fits that category and will spend the festive period in Ireland.

Aoife’s parents were born here in Ireland and she is in Ireland for Christmas and New Years.

A number of British born players featured for Pauw during her tenure including Grace Maloney, Harriet Scott, Ruesha Liitlejohn. and Lily Agg as well as American born players such as Kyra Carusa. The Ireland manager explained the importance of adding depth to the squad, especially should a number of players be unavailable in the lead up to the finals.

You can check out the full Vera Pauw interview with the Green Machíne on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and greenmachinepodcast.com.

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