Tag: Trapattoni

  • O’Neill and Keane appointed as Irish dynamic duo

    O’Neill and Keane appointed as Irish dynamic duo

    FAI chief executive John Delaney has confirmed that Martin O’Neill will be the new Republic of Ireland manager, with Roy Keane as his number two in what the Irish support hope will signal “a new era for Irish football.”

    O’Neill is expected to appoint his own backroom staff with the combined package estimated to cost the FAI more than €2 million per annum.

    Delaney has stated that an official press conference and unveiling will take place on Saturday 9th November.

    Interestingly, it was Martin O’Neill’s decision to bring Roy Keane into the frame, with Delaney claiming that the FAI had no participation in the decision.

    The new number one and two have a lot in common despite their almost 20 year age difference. Both have played for Nottingham Forest under the great Brian Clough, and both men have held the reins at Sunderland football club.

    With Keane and O’Neill  both having taken a brief hiatus from the game since their last jobs, the Ireland vacancy seems like a fantastic opportunity for the two Irishmen to get back into the game, albeit at an international level which neither have experience in managing.

    Keane will take his first step back into the game after his spell at Ipswich Town in 2011.
    Keane will take his first step back into the game after his spell at Ipswich Town in 2011. Credit: Figo29 on WordPress

    O’Neill and Keane are a perfect balancing act – O’Neill, the affable Belfast man with his modest personality and calm temperament. Keane, with his determined and infallible attitude, renowned for his hot-headed nature and no-nonsense take on the game.

    Neil Lennon stamped his approval on the appointment stating “they’re two great characters with a vast knowledge of the game, two very proud men as well. God help the players!”

    On paper, this looks like a potentially successful appointment, although the danger is also there for all to see. It would have been a huge mistake to hire another foreign manager after Trapattoni’s spell, but Keane and O’Neill are widely respected and influential figures in the game. And more importantly, they’re Irish!

    However, can two big characters and personalities work so closely together and generate a successful partnership to take Irish football forward, or will it be a case of one step forward and two steps back for John Delaney and the FAI?

    The Irish support has already taken to social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, in particular, to voice their opinions on the matter. The decision seems to be met with a widely mixed reaction.

    Paddy Power have tweeted: “Ireland to qualify for Euro 2016 now 5/6! 3/1 to qualify for World Cup 2018. First to leave their job, 4/6 Keane v 11/10 O’Neill.”

    Featured image credit: Wiki

  • King bows out after controversial spell as interim boss

    King bows out after controversial spell as interim boss

    Noel King’s time as interim manager after Giovanni Trapattoni’s swift departure as Ireland’s head coach was originally seen as a breath of fresh air by the majority of Irish fans.

    The 57-year-old Dubliner is no stranger to the beautiful game, having played for more than two decades in the League of Ireland, managing in it for twelve, and even had a spell at French second division club Valenciennes.

    Having managed the Irish women’s international team from 2000-2010 and the Irish U-21s for the last three years, King has more than enough experience to work with the senior players of the national team, having coached a handful of his squad at the U-21 level.

    Trapattoni's spell in charge took a drastic turn after the miserable performance in Euro 2012. Photo courtesy of Davit Hakobyan on flickr
    Trapattoni’s spell in charge took a drastic turn after the miserable performance in Euro 2012. Photo courtesy of Davit Hakobyan on flickr

    His decision to invite a couple of the Airtricity League’s top players to train with the national team before the Germany game was revitalising and invigorating to see, compared to Trapattoni who continually denied the fact that there is a competitive football league in Ireland.

    The easy approach for King to adapt in the last two qualifying fixtures of the campaign was to deploy an attractive, attacking philosophy of play with a ‘nothing to lose’ mentality, which has been called for on numerous occasions by the Irish supporters and also by some sections of the media.

    In doing so, King may have won some fans and finish his interim spell earning some plaudits for giving it a go against Germany and Kazakhstan.

    However, this was indeed the easy choice and King opted to take the harder and more courageous route by stamping his own authority on the squad for those two games and no Irish supporter can complain about the two results recorded, regardless of the performance against Kazakhstan in the Aviva.

    King’s defiant and belligerent reaction to RTE’s Tony O’Donoghue in the final post-match press interview was met with great interest. Asked about his team selection after the game, he jumped into a histrionic defence of his choices and berated the journalist after walking out of the interview.

    His short spell in charge has been a drastic contrast to his Italian predecessor and his outburst illustrated his passion, emotion and patriotism for the country’s football, unfortunately this also showed a certain naïveté about the demands on those involved at the top level of management on the world stage.

    Former Sunderland boss Martin O'Neill is the bookmakers' favourite for the Ireland job. Photo: dalli58 on flickr
    Former Sunderland boss Martin O’Neill is the bookmakers’ favourite for the Ireland job. Photo: dalli58 on flickr

    Noel King has been and will continue to be an influential character on the Irish football circuit, but he was never going to be chosen to fill the void as the national coach.

    John Delaney and the FAI have a tremendously important decision to ponder regarding the appointment of the future manager of Ireland, with Mick McCarthy, Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane all being deemed early frontrunners for the post.