Former Chelsea keeper Carlo Cudicini has joined the Republic of Ireland Under 21s coaching staff for Thursday 's European Under 21s Championship qualifier against Andorra . The 41-year-old , who also played for AC Milan and Tottenham , will fill the vacancy left by the retired Alan O'Neill after completing his UEFA B Licence with the Football Association of Ireland . Manager Noel King said : 'Carlo Cudicini is coming in to the do the goalkeepers initially . We 'll see how it goes and work together to try and win the game obviously . Former Chelsea goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini has joined the Republic of Ireland Under 21 's coaching staff . 'His experience will be a great help to us . It wo n't be just goalkeeping - we 'll include him as we do with all our staff in the preparation . We 'll value his views and hopefully that 'll add strength to us . 'We 're thankful to Alan O'Neill , who has been with us and the Association for a great number of years and has been a great servant . 'He has to move on due to work commitments , and we 'll look forward to a successful time with Carlo . ' The 41-year-old ( right ) also had spells at AC Milan , LA Galaxy and Tottenham ( pictured in April 2012 )
Republic of Ireland Under 21s play Andorra on Thursday . Ex-goalkeeper Chelsea completed his UEFA B Licence with the FAI . 41-year-old had playing spells at AC Milan , Carlo Cudicini and Tottenham .