Ireland star’s head left spinning after whirlwind day between wife giving birth and playing in vital fixture

REPUBLIC OF Ireland star Sammie Szmodics had a life-changing weekend – but he didn’t slow down once.

The Blackburn Rovers striker made his 300th EFL career appearance when he lined-out against Norwich City on Saturday afternoon.

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Sammie Szmodics became a father for the second time right before a huge clash[/caption]

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Szmodics got back in time to make his 300th career league appearance[/caption]

The match kicked-off less than four hours after Szmodics’ wife gave birth their second child together.

Szmodics was with his wife for their birth but still managed to make it to Ewood Park and play 90 minutes.

The side drew 1-1 with a side nine places above them in the Championship table.

Blackburn shared their appreciation for the 28-year-old on social media before the game.

They tweeted: “Congratulations to @SamSzmodics, who became a father for the second time at 11.15 this morning before racing to Ewood to play today!

“Some commitment!”

Fans shared their love of the striker while also congratulating him on his huge day in the comments.

One wrote: “Congratulations! And also huge amounts of respect for turning out for the team today!”

Another commented: “What’s not to love about this guy. Go grab a brace now Sammie!”

A third added: “Absolute dedication! Not many players would do this! Come on Rovers!!”

Yet another said: “Hope the babs doing well. Shows he is committed to the project, true professional and we’ll be forever in his debt.”

Szmodics is quite popular with Ireland fans as well as Blackburn but he is still uncapped for the Boys in Green.

However, last month there were fears that Ireland could miss out on the goalscorer with Hungary rumoured to be tempting the multi-eligible star.

Hungary boss Marco Rossi reportedly put forward an offer for Szmodics to train with the squad, according to the Irish Examiner.

Rossi was said to have ‘tabled an invitation for the player to audition’ ahead of their Euro 2024 campaign this summer.

Despite having never played for Ireland, Szmodics has been in the squad a couple of times before.

He was forced to pull out with injury in June of 2021, while he also left the squad last October to deal with a personal issue.

Szmodics qualifies for Hungary through his grandfather but had previously laid out his intentions to represent Ireland.

Born in England, he went through a process of getting an Irish passport to play for the Boys in Green, as he is eligible through his Longford-born grandmother.