Heimir Hallgrimsson claimed that "a lot of lies" had been written about the situation within the Republic of Ireland camp as he emphasised that the players had welcomed Gavin Bazunu back with open arms in the wake of his decision not to partake in the UEFA Nations League games against Israel.
Bazunu was the only absentee for Sunday's 3-0 victory over the Israelis in Debrecen, Hungary.
On the eve of the game, the goalkeeper said " it would be wrong to participate in the upcoming fixtures against Israel" and that his decision to sit out the game was a stance "against the atrocities in the region".
Reports on Saturday had suggested that the timing of his decision to pull out of the squad had not sat well with some within the Irish camp.
Although Bazunu will not play in this Sunday's 'home' game with Israel in Backa Topola, Serbia - a game which Hallgrimsson confirmed will be fulfilled - the Bolton Wanderers player trained with his Ireland team-mates at Aviva Stadium yesterday ahead of Thursday's home fixture against Austria.
Speaking in Wednesday's pre-match press conference, Ireland manager Hallgrimsson was keen to laud Bazunu's attitude.
"Gavin is a great lad. I've always had a good relationship with him and it's probably more tough for him than the other players, but they have really welcomed him," he said.
"There's been a lot of lies said around all of this, but we welcome him back and he's taken part. Amazing.
"I think it shows his character, as well, to be with us. So I want to give him praise for that. I want to give the players praise for how welcome they have been with him.
"Life goes on. He is a part of this group and I think that shows how strong the bond is between these players that even a thing like this is not breaking us."
Hallgrimsson also said that Josh Keeley has been called up as an additional goalkeeper for the camp, and will fill in as the number three when Bazunu drops out of the squad for this Sunday's match.
Meanwhile, Bosun Lawal, who also trained at Aviva Stadium on Tuesday after returning to the squad, will not be fit enough to face Austria, Hallgrimsson added.
"We are managing his recovery with Stoke City, and (Stoke sporting director) Jonathan Walters has been fantastic, allowing him to come and understanding us as well, that we need him in preparation for this game, because we are going to face Austria again next month," he said.
Hallgrimsson would not be drawn on whether he would select Finn Azaz for the Austria game but leave him out for the match against Israel.
The Southampton player has Israeli roots on the maternal side of his family, and remained on the bench in Debrecen.
However, like in the case of Bazunu, Hallgrimsson was keen to highlight the 26-year-old's character.
"I think Finn has shown incredible emotional control, emotional awareness. Probably in my mind at the moment, he is one of the people that I admire the most in how he conducted himself in all of this," he said.
"It is about being a member of a team, so you need to listen to all opinions. It is just one of the things, to do your thing, to do your work with grace and understanding of all opinions.
"Talking about walking the extra mile to being a part of a national team, I don't have words to explain to you.
"You wouldn't understand because inside camp, he has so much respect within this group of players.
"Just walking the extra mile to be a part of this team is amazing. Again, he has been one of the people I admire the most in the world at this moment."
Amid a difficult and fractious time for the national team, Hallgrimsson said he had sought the counsel of the absent leaders within his team, Nathan Collins and Séamus Coleman.
"I have because I need advice as well. They are the leaders and have the experience, but none of us have experienced anything like this," he said.
"So we are kind of inventing as we go how we should treat a situation like this. When we look back in two weeks or three weeks, we probably see we should have done this one better than we did.
"But hopefully, and I surely think that in time, we will have seen that we took more right decisions than wrong ones."
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