Republic of Ireland midfielder James McCarthy is a major doubt for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers later this month. 

The 30-year-old came off after an hour of Crystal Palace's goalless draw against Manchester United in the Premier League with a suspected reaggravation of a groin injury.

McCarthy was starting his first game for Palace since initially picking up the issue in late January and he's only featured twice for Ireland since 2016 due to a succession of injuries.

Stephen Kenny's Ireland kick off their 2020 World Cup qualification away to Serbia on Wednesday, March 24th before hosting Luxembourg at the Aviva Stadium three days later.

"Yes it’s a concern because the injury which kept him out was an injury in the groin region and he felt it again," Palace boss Roy Hodgson said of McCarthy's withdrawal.

“It is a major concern and if it turns out he can’t play in the next couple of games, it will be a major blow for us because I thought he did very well in the 60 minutes he played.

“He is a player we would like to see available but he is another in the course of the season who has missed a lot of games for injury or personal reasons.”