Sheffield United: Mick McCarthy offers insight into extent of David McGoldrick injury

Callum Robinson, Enda Stevens and John Egan were all called up by McCarthy, ahead of Euro 2020 qualification matches against Georgia and Switzerland. Ireland will be hopeful of securing qualification to next summer's tournament, as they're currently unbeaten and two points clear at the top of Group D.

Speaking to the Irish Times, McCarthy claimed he still hadn't given up hope of McGoldrick playing some part in the next two matches via a late call-up, and gave an insight into the extent of the injury that saw him miss United’s 1-0 loss to Liverpool last Saturday.

The veteran manager said: "Didsy was optimistic (of playing, but) I honestly don’t know. They tell me he is back on the grass this week (and) generally when they say you are back on the grass, it means that you are back to doing something in terms of football work.

"So until I get an absolute ‘no’ from him, the club or the medics, I’ll retain optimism."

The 31-year-old played a pivotal role in the Blades' promotion to the Premier League last season, and was rewarded for his efforts by manager Chris Wilder by retaining his place in the squad for the 2019/20 campaign.

So far this season, the powerful forward is yet to get off the mark and score his first top tier goal, but he's already shown glimpses that he's more than capable of impressing in the Premier League.