FAI head of football Mark Canham has dismissed concerns that budget constraints are hampering the Republic of Ireland’s search for a new manager.
A lengthy recruitment process involving Mr Canham, FAI chief executive Jonathan Hill and Packie Bonner is thought to have seen him offered an increased salary of €700,000 from the €560,000 paid to Stephen Kenny. ing.
“Budget is not an issue,” Canham told reporters at the Aviva Stadium after the FAI player pathway was launched on Tuesday. “We’ve had frank discussions with all of our candidates. I think we’re making good progress and are doing things in a very thorough and robust way.
“We were very careful in everything we did, making sure we carried out our steps in a really professional manner and speaking to people at the right time and in the right way. We’re still at a good stage.
“This is a confidential process,” he added. “We have followed a very rigorous process.”
The 41-year-old believes a head coach will be announced within the next two weeks.
“We’re getting close. We’re following a very similar process, a similar timeline to the appointment of a women’s head coach.”
It took Canham 15 weeks to appoint Eileen Gleeson as Ireland women’s coach in mid-December, 13 weeks after the FAI board failed to extend Kenny’s contract.
Former Wales manager Chris Coleman and former Northern Ireland international Neil Lennon will not be replacing Kenny, according to numerous reports, despite both veteran managers being interviewed.
Lee Carsley was the association’s main target and informal approaches were made to the England Under-21 manager when Kenny was still in the job.
“In terms of what we look for in a new head coach, we’re pretty clear,” Canham continued. “We want them to coach the team, coach the team on the grass and get the best out of them.
“We want them to perform better and get better results. We want to be more competitive in every match, we want a very positive UEFA Nations League, we want to give ourselves a 26th We want to give them the best chance to qualify for the World Cup.” We know it’s going to be really difficult. ”
Anthony Barry’s candidacy could be revived once his time working under manager Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich comes to an end.
“We know it’s an important role for Irish football. I completely understand that and understand the responsibility. We’re doing things the right way and we’re doing things the right way. , we hope to complete the process as soon as possible.”
But last December, Hill emphasized the importance of hiring a manager in February. If the search stalls again, it is possible that an interim appointment will be necessary for the friendlies against Belgium and Switzerland in March.
Former Manchester United defender John O’Shea could be in the interim slot as he briefly coached Ireland under Kenny before taking Wayne Rooney’s place at Birmingham City. Rooney was released after 83 days, so O’Shea is available.