Aston Villa striker Scott Hogan was a surprise name in Martin O'Neill's provisional 32-man Republic of Ireland squad on Tuesday for the upcoming crucial 2018 World Cup qualifiers against Moldova and Wales, and Villa fans are confused by the news.

Despite suffering from a lack of form and injuries since making the move to Villa Park during the January transfer window earlier this year, he has been selected by his country for the first time.

O'Neill's men suffered a 1-0 home defeat by Serbia in their previous qualifier earlier this month which has left them in third place in Group D, five points behind their victors in September and one adrift of Wales.

Hogan's Villa teammates Conor Hourihane and Glenn Whelan also made the cut, with Ireland likely to have to win both games to have any chance of securing a play-off spot minimum.

Aston Villa supporters were quick to have their say on the striker’s shock inclusion via social media, and while some think it is a "bad idea" because the 25-year-old has already suffered two ACL injuries during his career, others simply asked "How?"

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…