Injured Norwich City midfielder Anthony Pilkington looks poised to miss the club's Premier League trip to Sunderland after being withdrawn from the Republic of Ireland's provisional squad for upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

Pilkington suffered a recurrence of his left hamstring injury in the Canaries' weekend Premier League 0-0 draw against Southampton at Carrow Road.

The 24-year-old started the game with a precautionary strapping on his leg but was substituted after only 35 minutes following a challenge from Maya Yoshida. Pilkington had previously been forced to pull out of the Republic's last squad for what would have been his first senior cap in February's Dublin friendly win over Poland after injuring his hamstring in Norwich's goalless league draw at QPR.

City's medical staff will assess the extent of Pilkington's latest injury blow over the coming days, but the wide midfielder appears certain to miss the club's upcoming league fixtures following confirmation from the Football Association of Ireland on Sunday he had pulled out of Giovanni Trapattoni's initial 29-man party.

Club officials have yet to confirm how long Pilkington is likely to be out but the Republic are scheduled to play World Cup qualifiers against Sweden in Stockholm on March 22 followed by a home fixture against Austria four days later.

Trapattoni gave a strong indication he was prepared to hand Pilkington his international debut later this month when the Italian unveiled his provisional squad prior to the weekend, which also included City team mate Wes Hoolahan.

'Pilkington is a typical character, we saw him in many games. He has a good personality with or without the ball,' said Trapattoni. 'He's technical. It's not easy to play near the line but he can take a touch very well and go on goal. I think I am very, very confident about him – very confident.'