IRELAND MANAGER MARTIN O’Neill will finalise the location of their Euro 2016 pre-tournament training camp in the coming weeks.
With Group E games against Sweden (13 June), Belgium (18 June) and Italy (22 June) taking place in Paris, Bordeaux and Lille, it was confirmed last month that the team will be based in Versailles during the tournament.
The Boys in Green are scheduled to play Switzerland and Slovakia at the end of March before a third friendly at the Aviva Stadium against the Netherlands on 27 May.
The FAI have looked at the possibility of travelling to a number of different countries including Austria after that match, but O’Neill has revealed that the camp could end up being a lot closer to home.
“Nothing has been set in stone yet, but what we’re looking at is actually staying relatively local,” he said while speaking to the media at the SSE Airtricity SWAI awards.
“We’ve had the opportunity to go to a couple of places, Austria and somewhere else, but knowing that the weather is going to be really brilliant here in Dublin we thought that we might stay relatively local, local meaning within the UK.”
The Derryman, who will meet with coaching staff Roy Keane, Steve Guppy and Seamus McDonagh next week before making the final decision, says one of the reasons behind the thinking would be to give the players the opportunity to be close to their families in the run-up to the finals.
“If the players are not a million miles from home, then their families are not far away,” he said. “There will be a day or two that I will allow them to go see their families.
“For instance, when we come here to the Castleknock Hotel and when we were at Portmarnock, I didn’t mind the players’ wives and families (visiting).
Like Robbie Brady’s family would come in, sit down and have a cup of tea. It was never really a problem.
“And I think if they were seeing their family relatively close to when we’re going away, there would be less pining once we got out into the main business. That’s one of the thoughts.”
When asked whether discussions with the FAI about a new contract have moved on, O’Neill added that there have been no recent developments — although he plans to sit down with chief executive John Delaney soon.
“We just thought we’d get Christmas and New Year out of the way,” he said. “I actually saw John today and I think he wants to get things moving so in the next few weeks I think there’ll probably be some sort of chat about it.”
C’mon the Pool!
@Gerry Peyton: it’s a little cold to be going to the pool.. Maybe around summer time come back to me
Hooray defence has changed a little.
Liverpool starting XI: Mignolet, Alexander-Arnold, Can, Lovren, Robertson, Henderson, Milner, Wijnaldum, Coutinho, Salah, Firmino. Subs: Karius, Klavan, Grujic, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Mane, Solanke, Sturridge.
Some good news finally.
@Hank_Scorpio: Emre Can at centre Half?
@Ronan Rafferty: at this stage I take a traffic cone over some of the centre halves.
@Ronan Rafferty: plus it’s good to see No 23 back in the defence.
Brighton to Win and Shane Duffy to score a header..
@Colin Floyd: you are a header
@Colin Floyd: threw himself to the ground for that peno, our Shane.
Come on Hendo Cano Dumo Robo Salo Gimpo Harpo Gypo and Kloppo . Majestic !
@powerfix: whatever your in to, we won’t judge.
A Brighton win here wouldnt surprise me….if they contain and mark Salah, then they should score and take the points…i’m a big fan of Chris Houghton who was very hard done by at Norwich..
And on to more important news…well done Chelsea another 3 points and the gap is closing….ish !!!!
@dannyboy: Hard done by at Newcastle too. The man gets no respect from up high but players have never had a bad word to say. Excellent football man, terrible footballing politician. Unfortunately that’s the same as every other walk of life. Big Sam, anyone?
@dannyboy: Houghton?? Wasn’t he yer man that put the ball in the back of the English net?
@dannyboy: Great prediction, you must be a real football man, Lol!
3-3 anyone ?
@powerfix: yeah maybe in 10 years