Stoke City defender Marc Wilson says that he is “gutted” after being ruled out of Euro 2016.

The Antrim native had been striving to prove his fitness for the tournament in France, which starts next month. The Aghagallon bred player, who can also play in midfield, is now set to miss the tournament.

Wilson was earlier named in Martin O’Neill’s 35-man provisional Republic of Ireland squad for tournament warm-up friendlies against the Netherlands and Belarus, but the Boys in Green boss revealed that a set-back to a knee injury has prevented the Antrim native’s involvement.

After also missing Euro 2012, the Potters midfielder lamented not being involved in the upcoming competition, writing on Twitter that he is “gutted to be out of the Euros.”

Wilson had featured in the qualification campaign for the European Championship, but, a series of injuries meant that he missed the final stages, including the play-offs. Despite making progress in his recovery, however, the tournament in France will come too soon.

Ireland take on the Netherlands at the Aviva Stadium on May 27 before taking on Belarus on May 31 at Turner’s Cross as friendlies, before heading across to France. According to the latest odds on sites such as StanJames.com, ireland are ‘Dark Horses’ to lift the trophy, with germany, France and England the main favourites.

The talented player came through the ranks for Ireland Under 21 squad before breaking into top flight national football team for Northern Ireland in 2011. He has 24 international caps to his belt and has scored a goal.

For Stoke City in the just concluded English Premier League season, he missed most of the games as he was out due to injury. He started just a game for Stoke and missed the last half of the season due to medial collateral ligament injury. He played in the FA Cup and the League Cup. Ireland will play their first match against Sweden in Paris on 13 June, with Belgium and Italy their other opponents in Group E.