New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Ryan Meara wants to play for Giovanni Trapattoni’s Ireland.

The Irish-American MLS star has officially declared for the Republic and is about to be capped at under 21 level.

Trapattoni has repeatedly called on Irish-American players to let the FAI know of their heritage.

Already the Republic have capped American born Derby County player Conor Doyle at underage level – but Doyle later returned to the American colors.

And Meara will follow suit when he is called into the Irish under 21 squad for a friendly with Denmark later this month.

The Under 21 team manager Noel King told the Irish Sun newspaper: “Ryan has made contact and wants to play for us.

“We were made aware of his eligibility and we spoke to him and his club. He is keen to give it a go. He was already an Irish citizen and it was just a matter of getting his passport which he has now.

“He’s playing at a good level, with and against international players. I’ve watched him online and spoken to people who have watched him in action there and the feedback has been good.”

Yonkers native Meara was drafted by the Red Bulls in pre-season after impressing for Fordham University.
The 21-year-old has played in their eight MLS games to date and is due to come up against Robbie Keane’s LA Galaxy this Saturday.