How does it take 13 monkeys to hire a manager? Answer 113 days

Pigman II

prendy wrote: »

now with venebales sacked what would peoples view on him be?

Nah we've enough con-men on the pitch. We don't need a manger who's one as well.

dbnavan

prendy wrote: »

now with venebales sacked what would peoples view on him be?
i personally think he'd be good.he's got international experience he gets on well with his players and id say he'd take the job.

He had two spells at England, Manager, and Assitant Manager, and didnt do anything to write home about, I heard someone make the point on radio last week, this business of just getting a manager because they have managed before is nonsense, we want someone with a track record. Venables hasnt got that, yes he has managed at the top but you could hardly say it was successful. The Irish job should not be viewed as somewhere to go to slip away into retirement we need to be looking for real top class managers. It is an international job, and should be treated as the top job in Irish soccer.

herbieflowers

erm didn't he get to the semis of the Euros in 96 with England? And manage Oz, making them into a decent outfit?

mike65

El Tel has done more right than wrong as Ron Manager and frankly its not like the FAI can be too picky. If he's seriously interested and Capello is'nt banging the door down (!) then you could do a lot worse.

Mike.

AARRRGH

Capello for Ireland? Seriously. Could it work? Would he want the job?

Juan Pablo

dublindude wrote: »

Capello for Ireland? Seriously. Could it work? Would he want the job?

Probably. He'd also want around €6m a year in wages. Which makes it a non runner. England would pay it though.

Brethitmanhart

Look at the difference in Houllier and Venables in trophys won over their career...then you have your answer. Venables and Houllier both want the job, but one is much more qualified!

Unearthly

herbieflowers wrote: »

erm didn't he get to the semis of the Euros in 96 with England? And manage Oz, making them into a decent outfit?

His England reign wasn't a rosey as people are led to believe.

First of all he didn't he have to qualify and had home advantage throughout the tournament, then they were poor against the Swiss and drew. They were lucky against Scotland with a penalty miss and a moment of magic from Gazza, were brilliant against the Dutch, played a boring match against Spain and only won on penos which could of gone either way, then to top it off they were boring and unimpressive against an ageing German side in the semis

Sizzler

El Tel is almost 3/1 on betfair this morning, I think thats well worth a punt

Xavi6

All this talk of El Tel is scaring me. He just wants one final pay day so he never runs short of funds for the sun beds. Seriously how can people want him as our manager? The guy has achieved very little as a manager. Semis in 96 with England but they didn't play well (apart from against the Dutch).

herbieflowers wrote: »

And manage Oz, making them into a decent outfit?

Eh no that was a failure completely. Of course they p1ssed all over Oceania but when it came to a big tie they threw away a first leg lead against Iran and didn't qualify.

emc2

According to John Giles on newstalk this morning Paul Jewel Has ruled himself out of the running for the job....he want a club job.

whiskeyman

emc2 wrote: »

According to John Giles on newstalk this morning Paul Jewel Has ruled himself out of the running for the job....he want a club job.

No surprise there IMO.

Doyle has come out backing El Tel.
The Sunday Indo and Herald have wanted El Tel since Stan got the boot.
Face it people... he's gonna be the next manager.

Sizzler

TBH theres nobody else really mate that would fancy it, he has good experience at all levels and any SLIM chance there was of getting a TOP TOP class manager have now been removed with McClaren getting the red card, so theres no point in us getting delusions of grandeur.

Lets face it, its going to be a better managerial experience than the last whoever it is

patmac

John Giles was on Newstalk this morning saying Jewell is definetly not interested in the job, and Liam Brady is and would be a good choice, his influence could be strong and at 14/1 with Paddy Power he could be a good bet.

ninebeanrows

It looks like its going to Terry Venables.

He is now below evens, 1.88 on BF

PHB

I'm disappointed about Jewell. It was always too good to be true, alas

_blank_

I, for one, am glad it's not going to be Paul Jewell.

DesF wrote: »

If Paul Jewell becomes Ireland manager after Staunton, I will carry out a forfeit decided by the posters of the Boards.ie Soccer Forum.

It was looking a bit hairy there for a while.

eirebhoy

Roy Hodgson, the current manager of finland's national team, has been a professional coach for more than 30 years, and has spent the bulk of that time outside his native England. He started his coaching career in Sweden with Halmstad BK, winning the title twice in four years. Then, after two years at Bristol City FC, he coached Swedish club Orebro SK to the second division championship. A move to Malmo FF resulted in a period of exceptional success with five successive championships and two cups being accumulated. After working for Neuchatel Xamax FC in Switzerland, Roy took over the national team of that country and led them to the 1994 World Cup finals and Euro '96. FC Internazionale acquired his services and he added a UEFA cup silver medal to his collection. Spells at Blackburn rovers, Grasshopper-Club Zurich, FC Kobenhavn (he won the championship with the Danish club), Udinese and the national team of the United Arab Emirates then followed, before he was enticed to take charge of Finland's national team. With Euro 2008 as his target, Roy has made an immediate impact, and the Finns have high hopes of qualifying from a very difficult group. No matter the outcome of the current campaign, Roy will surely prove once again that he is a coach of immense quality. He is English, he is an outstanding professional, he is...ROY HODGSON

1 • As the head coach of Finland, what
are the main challenges you have faced?
There have been no major problems
because the squad was composed of
many tried and tested players, with a
lot of experience. But, of course, in all
new jobs you face some challenges.
These could be summarised as the
need to make a good impression on the
players and the staff, the importance
of convincing everyone about your
coaching ideas and methods, and establishing
a good working environment.
These have been essential factors here
but would, of course, be important
anywhere. But I have to say, there have
been no dramatic issues to deal with.

2 • In your view, what is the difference
between managing a top
club side and coaching a national
team?
The obvious answer is time. The
time spent with players and your
ability to work on team play is much
more limited with a national squad.
There are fewer matches with the
national team, but each one carries
an element of prestige and pride
for your country. On the other hand,
you avoid the club management
situations like dealing with agents,
negotiating salaries, buying and
selling players. Both club coaches
and national managers, however,
can be faced with conflict when it
comes to the release of players for
national team duty. The players are
unfortunately stuck in the middle
of this debate. Finally, the image you
project is probably even more important
when it comes to national teams
because you are representing a
nation’s football – this is very important
for the national coach to remember.
At club level, you can be a little
more parochial. You can fight for your
club’s agenda and sometimes you
may even anger others or create jealousy
in the country. But the national
coach must be aware of his responsibility
for the way football is perceived
in a country, and that is an important
aspect of his particular role.

3 • How would you describe your
style of management?
It is not always easy to describe oneself,
but I would like to think that my
style could be considered as studied,
player-orientated, and with an emphasis
on preparation and tactics. Because
you take on leadership responsibilities,
inevitably you have to be somewhat
authoritarian. The game of football doesn’t
lend itself to true democracy. Certainly
as I get older, I have become more
aware that you can delegate certain
things. For example, the players’ opinion
can be useful when discussing training
times or deciding travel schedules, etc.
Indeed, most things to do with the players’
preparation can be open for discussion.
When it comes down to the major
issues, for example, team selection, how
you are going to conduct your training
sessions, what you will emphasise, and
how you will deal with any conflict situation
which might arise, I don’t think there
is any room for a democratic approach
when dealing with these matters. Players
expect you to take the lead, because
that is what you are paid for. But I think
it is good to involve them in things
which make a big difference to their life
but don’t compromise your position.

4 • What do you emphasise when
preparing the national team?
Tactical preparation is crucial and I try
to make sure that each player knows his
role and is prepared for any challenges
which he might face. That can, of course,
be specific to the opposition which we
will encounter. I try to make it clear to
the players that the time we have
together is very limited and we need to
make efficient use of it. The goal is to
be like a club side – to be as well organised
as possible without the benefit
of working day in and day out. We
want to avoid wasting any training
sessions because time is precious.
You try to produce an instant gelling
of the group and you need to be
adaptable to cope with the inevitable
call-offs and enforced changes. The
more club-like you can make the
team, the more security you can give
the players, the better. This is especially
the key when you are working
with a small country. Each player
needs to feel part of a stable squad
of maybe 20-25 players. Very few
nations in the world can field two
different teams of top quality. Therefore
most have to blend together the
small group of players who are capable
of playing international football.

5 • How has the coaching job
changed since you started?
Thirty-one years of coaching is a long
time, but I resist taking the view that
‘distance lends enchantment’. But,
unquestionably, there have been significant
changes in the staffing of football
clubs. Today we have everything
from nutritionists to high-tech specialists.
For example, when we were in
South Korea recently, they had video
analysis at half-time. There is no
doubt that a lot has been done to
give the coach more tools and to
make the job easier. But, the crux of
the job, i.e. standing in front of players
and trying to persuade them that
your ideas, your methods, your way
of working are worth following, this
hasn’t really changed. Whatever kind
of help the coach gets from the
psychologist and the fitness trainer,
he will still have to convince the
group in front of him that he has
something to offer them. When I
started, there was only my assistant
and myself, but today many coaches
have a staff of 20 to 30 people. There
has been an enormous development
in terms of support, à la American
sports organisations. But I still think
the face-to-face communication with
the players and the basic coaching
haven’t changed much over the years.

6 • As someone who has qualified
for previous European Championship
and World Cup final rounds, what
are the important difficulties a coach
faces when preparing for such
events?
In the qualifying rounds and ‘the final
phase’ the task is to produce a consistency
of performance, so that the coach
knows that his team are not going to
let him down. You need to work very
hard to avoid extremes – for example,
last month your team was compact,
this time you were all over the place.
This is particularly significant when
working with a national team where the
result creates either euphoria or disaster,
and has consequences for the players’
morale and public expectations. As a
coach of a national team you have
to avoid extremes, either getting carried
away because of a good result or
becoming pessimistic after a loss. When
you go into a final round you must be
aware of what it will mean for the players
to be fully concentrated for the duration
of the event. Also, they are away
together in a different, sometimes claustrophobic
environment. The Italians
can usually handle this better than most
because they are used to living in training
camps for extended periods of time.
Most players don’t have this type of
experience. Making sure that the players
can keep some sort of perspective and
a reasonable level of enjoyment in their
lives is vital during a final round. You
need to lighten their load because they
will be under pressure, with all sorts
of demands on them. Normally, the
football and coaching side is the least
of your problems, but the care of the
players on a human level may require
a lot of attention. The teams which
consistently qualify have a wealth of
experience in dealing with tournament
play and this is their advantage.

7 • As someone who has been on
both sides of the fence, what would
you do to improve the relationship
between club and national team
coaches?
The only way to improve this issue is
through communication. Both partners
need to show empathy for the other’s
problems. All coaches agree that it’s
not a good idea to put the players into
a bad situation. Yet, we consistently do,
because each side is thinking about
their own needs. Having said that, the
coordinated calendar has made a big
difference. Certainly within Europe it has
helped, but clubs with South American
or African players still have major problems.
However, the one thing I would
like to see is some discussion about the
number of dates for official matches and
for friendlies. If you are in a big qualifying
group like ours, then you need to
use some friendly dates for official
games and this can be a disadvantage.
In summing up the club versus country
debate: give and take, common sense
and the ability to put yourself in someone
else’s shoes would go a long way to
bringing harmony amongst the coaches.

8 • In your opinion, what are the
significant trends in top-level
European football, from both a tactical
and managerial perspective?
From a managerial perspective, the
trend is for a coach to be judged more
quickly and more harshly than in the past.
Because of that, there is little scope for
a coach to develop his philosophy or his
management style because he might
not get the results quickly enough to give
him the time. What it has meant, at the
highest level, is that the ability to spend
money and buy the right players, and to
get them to fit in, has become more
important than it was in the past when
more time was given to the manager to
develop the players at his disposal. Today
he is being judged more on the quality
of his buys than on the standard of work
being carried out on a day-to-day basis.
From a tactical viewpoint, we could talk
about a lot of things but I’ll content
myself with three. Number one is the
importance of the counter-attack and
the ability to profit from the turnovers.
Secondly, the improvement of athleticism
and pace throughout the team. There
is no doubt the game is faster and the
selection of players reflects this. And
thirdly, there is less high-intensity pressing
from the front and in advanced areas.
This is partly because concern over the
interpretation of the offside law has
led teams to play deeper. Sides are still
compact, but this is mainly in their own
half of the pitch.

9 • Having worked in a number
of different football environments
(e.g. England, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland,
etc.), what are the biggest
challenges you have faced in adapting
to each new culture and approach
to the game?
I must say that I have been lucky and I
haven’t encountered too many problems
on my travels. The language has got to
be a key factor. If you can master the language,
this is of enormous benefit. This,
of course, helps you to communicate,
but it also sends out a message to the
country that you are not there just to
profit from them, but to take part and to
contribute. In addition, I think it is very
important to be open-minded. The worst
mistake you can make is suggest that you
have all the answers and your way is the
only way. It’s necessary to keep an open
mind and not to dismiss things that are
part of the culture of that country. In a
new environment, you often have to
work even harder on new relationships –
this includes the media, the public, the
directors. The playing side of it is often
the easiest part because football is a
universal language and the players will
quickly recognise if the coach is any
good. The players will forgive problems
in communication skills and manner
if they think you know your stuff.

10 • During your long, varied and
successful coaching career, what has
given you the greatest satisfaction?
There have been three key moments for
me. The first championship at Halmstad
BK in Sweden – to avoid relegation in
the first season and then to win the title
the next was very special. The fairytale
nature of this first success is an indelible
memory, albeit a long time ago. The five
successive Swedish championship titles
and the two cup triumphs with Malmö
FF added up to a major success,
because it doesn’t matter which league
you are in, it’s difficult to win it year after
year. And then the two qualifications
with Switzerland for the World Cup and
the European Championship would have
to rank the highest among my achievements.
Apart from the results, you also
get a lot of satisfaction from being recognised
by your peers, and being accepted
into the elite football family. You can’t
always be winning trophies and medals,
but you can be acknowledged by your
colleagues as a good coach, and this
brings its own contentment.

11 • Can UEFA’s top competitions
be improved in any way?
I’m not sure that there is room for much
improvement. Looking from the outside,
I must say that things are going remarkably
well. I’m sure minor modifications
are being considered all the time. But,
for me, the major and decisive move
was made when the UEFA Champions
League was introduced in the early
1990s. There was a danger back then
of American-style competitions, with
their franchise system, being imposed
on the European game. The idea that
teams can never be relegated and just
play on year after year, no matter what
the results, was never part of our football
philosophy. The UEFA Champions
League, fortunately, eliminated the
threat. Today, any subtle changes are
made by UEFA in close collaboration
with the major clubs, and that’s good
for the game.

12 • What are the key qualities which
a coach requires to be a success?
Briefly, I would say a successful coach
needs leadership skills, a talent for reading
the game, a gift for communication,
a capacity for detailed preparation, a
likable personality, a strong character,
a sense of perspective, and humility.
Books could be written on each of these
aspects of management – some already
have. And when we talk about these
qualities, I remember reading a quote
from the American John Wooden, who
said: “Talent is God-given; be humble.
Fame is man-given; be thankful.
And conceit is self-given; be careful.”

13 • What is your best quality?
Two qualities which I prize most in other
coaches are energy and enthusiasm,
and fortunately I think I have both. If you
are going to be a top coach, you need
to have those core qualities. Of course,
there are many other attributes which
we could discuss, but without energy
and enthusiasm a coach will struggle,
and I hope nobody will ever accuse me
of lacking either.

14 • How do you see the future
of international football?
It is certainly a battle to protect international
football. I hope that the glamour
of a few clubs will not have a negative
impact on the national teams, or indeed
on all the football being played around
the world. It’s very important that the
leagues are healthy in the medium or
small-size countries, as well as in the
major markets. Here in Finland, the
first league needs to be thriving – any
involvement clubs have in the UEFA
Champions League, no matter which
country they are from, must be considered
as the ‘icing on the cake’. International
football, in particular, needs to be
protected because it combines passion
for football and a pride in your country.
It would be suicidal to take away the
interest and excitement which the European
Championship and the World Cup
generate. These competitions surely
complement the glamour of the UEFA
Champions League and don’t detract
from it. We need to show the necessary
perspective, clubs and national associations,
and be aware of each other’s
needs. The only way we will have a problem
is if some people become too greedy
and want everything for themselves.

_blank_

tl;dr.

Bullet Points pls.

mike65

Anyone see Roy Hodgson on SSN? He's almost certainly leaving Finland as he has another position as a strong possibilty (to paraphrase his words), he'd be a good choice (the Aussies also seem to think so).

Mike.

Mr.Nice Guy

Roy Hodgson would be an ideal candidate in my view. Is he even in the frame? Any odds on him at all?

hiscan

i voted liam brady ,couldn't be any worse than our last manager ,its not going to be an easy post to fill

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Unearthly

Terry Venables

Living off a repuation over 10 years ago and even now if you look at his time then, there were quite a few faults with him.

estebancambias

If Venables is the next manager...We Riot.

I demand we protest outside FAI HQ.

Necronomicon

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

Roy Hodgson would be an ideal candidate in my view. Is he even in the frame? Any odds on him at all?

He would be great. Just hope the English FA don't go in for him.

Barlow07

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

Roy Hodgson would be an ideal candidate in my view. Is he even in the frame? Any odds on him at all?

I agree with you Mr. Nice Guy, he has done a good job with Finland and would be my first choice.

~Rebel~

Id take Hodgson as first choice now too now that jewell is out of the running. id still even take Souness over Venebles i think.

Trotter

I will be absolutely disgusted if Venables takes over. The FAI on the other hand love throwing money into black holes (The last of which was obsessed with banana skins) so Im sure they'll love El Tel.

Hodgson for me thanks very much.

luckylucky

I'm a bit surprised at the negativity towards El Tel. What more can we realistically expect, he's an experienced manager who knows his football.

estebancambias

The thing about Venables is that he lacks one basic thing in order to be a succesful manager...any sort of communication skills. He really lacks the ability to talk....PERIOD which might cause some trouble.

Hearing Jewell on Football Focus, I am gutted we did not get him. My opinion of him changed so much.

I think Hodgson would be our best bet. What style do the Finns play?

damo

Hodgson?? Souness?? Hutchings?!?!

Why do we have such low expectations? The above named may be 'less bad' than our recent appointments ie. kerr & staunton, but they are nowhere near 'world class'

We should be going after the likes of Capello & Mourinho! Money talks in soccer, with the right T&C's there is no reason why. with the current crop of players, someone like Capello wouldnt come in on a 2 year deal and give it a go.

estebancambias

Capello would not suit Ireland in my opinion.

~Rebel~

damo wrote: »

Hodgson?? Souness?? Hutchings?!?!

Why do we have such low expectations? The above named may be 'less bad' than our recent appointments ie. kerr & staunton, but they are nowhere near 'world class'

We should be going after the likes of Capello & Mourinho! Money talks in soccer, with the right T&C's there is no reason why. with the current crop of players, someone like Capello wouldnt come in on a 2 year deal and give it a go.

They could get the same money at a number of big clubs or countrys so why on earth would they decide to join us?

Brethitmanhart

The reason there is negativity towards El Tel is that his record does not matc the reputation that he seems to have.

He has won 2 trophies in his entire Career...and that was ages ago (last one in 93 I think (FA Cup)) ...the other was in 84 or 85 with Barcelona.
Since then he has ran clubs into the ground (Pompey, Leeds, Palace), he was over praised for his 96 efforts as England didn't play well bar the Holland game, He a cocky cockney. His last post was with the England national team and what did he contribute to?

He is a joke of a manager.


Then you have someone with a real good CV like Gerard Houllier or Roy Hodgson.

It's disgraceful that Vegetables can be even considered in this....this goes back to the same stupid errors that were made when Jack Charlton was appointed (Little experience, not a good record) over Bob Paisley (3 European Cups and 6 league titles in 9 years).....and still people don't realise that Jack Charlton had an amazing Irish team and we could have done better than him.

Mental Mickey

LMAO @ Vegetables.

Keano

The group we got in the draw this afternoon means we need to recruit a manager with that all important experience. Going to be tough to qualify as it is but if the FAI higher a "yellow pack" manager then we can forget all about it!!

Nunu

damo wrote: »

Hodgson?? Souness?? Hutchings?!?!

Why do we have such low expectations? The above named may be 'less bad' than our recent appointments ie. kerr & staunton, but they are nowhere near 'world class'

We should be going after the likes of Capello & Mourinho! Money talks in soccer, with the right T&C's there is no reason why. with the current crop of players, someone like Capello wouldnt come in on a 2 year deal and give it a go.

Hodgson is world class and I would presume he would view it as an insult that you would class him alongside the other 2:D

I would love to see you disprove the notion that he is world class

Erin Go Brath

Hodgson for me. Guys got a very good record with underperforming national teams.
I cringe at the thought of EL-Tel being our next manager. Hes too old for one, 65 in january afaik. I'm just not a fan anyway. Would've liked Jewell, but thats not to be.

Unearthly

damo wrote: »

Hodgson?? Souness?? Hutchings?!?!

Why do we have such low expectations? The above named may be 'less bad' than our recent appointments ie. kerr & staunton, but they are nowhere near 'world class'

We should be going after the likes of Capello & Mourinho! Money talks in soccer, with the right T&C's there is no reason why. with the current crop of players, someone like Capello wouldnt come in on a 2 year deal and give it a go.

Screw that head back on son

Mental Mickey

damo wrote: »

Hodgson?? Souness?? Hutchings?!?!

Why do we have such low expectations? The above named may be 'less bad' than our recent appointments ie. kerr & staunton, but they are nowhere near 'world class'

We should be going after the likes of Capello & Mourinho! Money talks in soccer, with the right T&C's there is no reason why. with the current crop of players, someone like Capello wouldnt come in on a 2 year deal and give it a go.

Mourinho or Capello would bankrupt the FAI with their wages!!! No way would that happen! That seems like something Ray Houghton would say.

Thanx 4 The Fish

Any chance that we could get a decent Irish manager ? Somebody who has managed before ? I do not want to be labelled some nature of xenophobe, ala the english fans who only wanted an english manager cos that foreign lad was awful, but there are some decent lads managing at home who could at least have a go for the friendlies until next year, see if they can do the job, get the players involved in the decision, surely they cannot do any worse than Stan.

Mental Mickey

Thanx 4 The Fish wrote: »

Any chance that we could get a decent Irish manager ? Somebody who has managed before ? I do not want to be labelled some nature of xenophobe, ala the english fans who only wanted an english manager cos that foreign lad was awful, but there are some decent lads managing at home who could at least have a go for the friendlies until next year, see if they can do the job, get the players involved in the decision, surely they cannot do any worse than Stan.

I don't think players should be involved in the recruitment of a manager in any situation.

Recruitment of managers should be left up to chairmen/chief executives etc.

Erin Go Brath

Brady or Oleary if it was going to be a paddy.

Of those, Brady could be a good shout

lordgoat

Mental Mickey wrote: »

I don't think players should be involved in the recruitment of a manager in any situation.

Recruitment of managers should be left up to chairmen/chief executives etc.

Because the FAI have done such a quality job lately?

Do you actually follow soccer regularly or just come in here to bother people whth half-assed ideas?

Mental Mickey

Erin Go Brath wrote: »

Brady or Oleary if it was going to be a paddy.

Of those, Brady could be a good shout

Oh God....please not O'Dreary.

_blank_

Thanx 4 The Fish wrote: »

Any chance that we could get a decent Irish manager ? Somebody who has managed before ? I do not want to be labelled some nature of xenophobe, ala the english fans who only wanted an english manager cos that foreign lad was awful, but there are some decent lads managing at home who could at least have a go for the friendlies until next year, see if they can do the job, get the players involved in the decision, surely they cannot do any worse than Stan.

Are you on about someone from the eL?

Let's take a look at the Top 5 last season.

Drogs - Paul Doolin
SPA - Johnny MacDonnell
Bohs - Sean Connors
Cork City - Damien Richardson
Rovers - Pat Scully

Then there's Par Fenlon.

Doolo had Drogs playing a horrible, but effective, style of football.

Johnny Mac will probably be replaced in the close season, and it was Kerr signing the players anyway.

Sean Connors has been roundly seen to be "found out" as a bit of a spoofer, and fell out with his best players.

Rico is Rico. He's been in the management game a long time, and never made the "step up" from the eL.

Pat Scully hasn't been managing very long, but did a decent job with Kilkenny in the First a couple of seasons ago, ande has done good work with Rovers. He's used about a hundred and fifty players though. He seems to have the potential alright, but needs more experience. Has been touted as Cork City's next manager.

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Unearthly

Have the FAI made that committee yet? Rumours that people are getting the job offered to them and an announcement could be made

WHAT IS GOING ON!

Mental Mickey

ziggy wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

Kilbane n Jewell were on Sky Sports this morning, and Kilbane was practically wrapped around Jewell!!

The players should be kept well away from the negotiations for a new manager, and be told to accept whoever the FAI appoint. Same goes for the English FA. I heard/read somewhere that they were considering involving John Terry and/or Steven Gerrard in the decision. Ridiculous.

Today's footballers have way too much influence over things.