Cork youngster set to make senior Aston Villa debut against Liverpool in the FA Cup

Cork teenager Tyreik Wright is expected to start for Aston Villa against Liverpool in the FA Cup on Friday evening.

The 2015 FA Cup finalists are planning on fielding a young team in the third-round tie due to a "significant" Covid-19 outbreak affecting the senior squad.

The 19-year-old from Ovens in Co. Cork has played 14 times for Villa’s under-23s this season and scored twice and assisted three times.

Wright started out playing for Lakewood Athletic in the Cork Schoolboys League and he signed a scholarship deal with Villa after impressing on trial in 2018.

The winger is perhaps best known for his performances for the Republic of Ireland at underage level.

In 2017 he was a part of the team which won the Victory Shield and in 2018 Wright was on Colin O’Brien’s team which lost the quarter final of the European Championships in controversial circumstances to The Netherlands.

Wright has also represented the Republic of Ireland's under-19s and has scored five goals from nine caps.

The teenager could be up against another Corkonian in Caoimhin Kelleher who is expected to make his third appearance of the season for the Reds on Friday night.

The goalkeeper, who comes from Blackrock in the heart of the city, has already played in the Champions League and the Premier League for Liverpool this year.