MARTIN O’NEILL REPORTEDLY held discussions with the FAI about his future yesterday.
The Republic of Ireland boss was summoned to late-night talks at an English hotel with Association chiefs, according to The Telegraph’s Luke Edwards.
FAI boss John Delaney is said to be alarmed by the poor attendance at last week’s international friendly with Northern Ireland at the Aviva Stadium as well as the team’s poor recent performances and he’s been persuaded to make a change to the management ticket.
Ireland wrapped up a torrid year, in which they won just once, with a scoreless draw away to Denmark on Monday night.
Afterwards, O’Neill insisted his enthusiasm for the job had not waned and he was looking forward to the Euro 2020 campaign.
“Next year is the year when it comes to the big stuff,” he said in Aarhus. “We’ll be playing big, big matches and the players have shown in the past couple of years that they’ve been up for that.”
More to follow
Delaney concerned over attendance ????
He’s worried about money while the rest of us are worried about results/ performance
@Oliver Francis: As chief executive I would hope he is concerned about finding the organisation.
@Oliver Francis:
https://www.change.org/p/football-association-of-ireland-remove-john-delaney-as-head-of-the-fai%C2%A0
@Oliver Francis: both the same thing
@Oliver Francis: Boycott until Delaney is sacked.
@Peter Kiernan: Who can sack him?
Never heard of so many people who didn’t even watch it on tv. Says it all
@Mickey Fennessy: NI is a sham entity so not a surprise
@dublincomments: nothing to do with poor attendance
If Martin goes then so should delaney.
@David Byrne: FAI is the cancer on the whole game, they care nothing for the development of the game in Ireland or our league. Their scam is just hire a somewhat recognisable has been manager to pull the wool over fans eyes, rely on England to produce a team of a few wing backs and nothing else then pocket all the rest of the money starting with no credentials to run anything shyster Delaney and his underlings
Summoned to a hotel in England for crunch talks don’t we have any hotels in Dublin that could cater for this
@Gerard Cooney: it says it all, doesnt it?
Outrageous and needless
@Liam MacSuibhne: O’Neill lives there
@Stevie Doran: Irish team with headquarters in Ireland. Be easier for him to come to Ireland to discuss …. says it all that they travel over
@Gerard Cooney: o Neill lives in England!!!
Even if an attacking manager cane only only so much he can do if we really on England to produce our players. Follow the rugby model and fund four or so professional clubs on this island and join the English lower leagues like a Swansea or a Cardiff and work our way up. And before loi hardcores attack me you could still run that competition even though it will never ever work.
@Eric Djemba-Djemba: your tag name is Eric Djemba Djemba, likelihood is that you’re a Liverpool supporter taking the pi55 or a United supporter. Whether you like it or not, you’re part of the problem with what is wrong with the domestic game.
While I don’t disagree with the fact that the structure needs a complete overhaul, supporting or lending talent to a foreign league is not the answer. The rugby model has worked as the pool of professional teams is much smaller. Scottish, Welsh, Italian clubs don’t need any assistance with their football leagues. Merge the Northern Irish League with the LOI, reduce the teams and you will see some benefit but ousting John Delaney would be the best start to addressing grassroots problems
@Eric Djemba-Djemba: what makes you think we could just send clubs over to England and they’d be allowed join the football league?
@Eric Djemba-Djemba: this would be excellent!
@Eric Djemba-Djemba: never happen. Established english clubs will just allow 4 irish teams to rock up and take league places? Invest in the loi.
@John Flynn: To merge the leagues, you’d have to merge the international teams. Not going to happen.
@John Flynn: no your part of the problem with your LOI pipe dream. How much could a Dundalk , sligo rovers, bray shelbourne bohs actually ever attract on a weekly basis?demographic or catchement area of most loi clubs to small a pool for any kind economic stability. Design professional clubs with a larger catchment area that could fill 20,000 plus a week and have proper statdia instead of what we have now. It’s possible just look at Connacht.
@Brian Dunne: money makes the world go round
@Eric Djemba-Djemba: who’ll be this magical 20 thousand at these games? 4 irish teams getting 20 thousand every week? You think 80 thousand irish will travel over eack week to watch these “franchises”??
@Eric Djemba-Djemba: just stop would you. You’ve suggested so many things that would break so many of UEFA and FIFA rules that it’s headache inducing. You’ve basically recommended the complete abolition of the basic tenets of international and continental football just so Ireland can change .
@Eric Djemba-Djemba: to be fair city dundalk and rovers are professional. Plus they are located in population centres with money. Not having stadia up to scatch hurts them.
@John Flynn: a restructured LOI with 8 teams strategically placed – Say 3 in Dublin, and then 1 regional team in Connacht, Midlands, Donegal/Sligo/Derry , South East and Cork . Centally contract all. That’s what the league needs. Diluting the talent and money and resources across 22 teams is absolutely mental. Would be like England having 220 league teams.
But because one or two thousand hard core Pats fans or bohs fans or rovers fans or whatever would never support a “West Dublin” amalgamated team we have to continue with a league that has been unfit for purpose for at least 30 years.
Is this just an act of appeasement with no real intent though, that’s the thing. On the other hand, Delaney might be noticing the vultures circling for him and is actively seeking some scapegoats.
Delaney has to go. he is the problem. along with his hangers on. he is the reason we haven’t a decent grassroots structure.
Says it all about the real problem when the head of the FAI is only roused into action once his pocket starts getting hit!
Pity we don’t have an all-island team. It’s been very successful in other sports.
@Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: after the behavior of some of the NI fans before and during the match I can’t see that happening. The Irish fans the booed their anthem weren’t much better. The people that follow football North of the border are a different breed than the rugby fans up there.
@Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin:
I suppose they are so-called ‘middle-class’ sports. You only have to witness the chanting at the Northern Ireland game by some idiots to realise the difficulties in creating an all-Ireland soccer team, unfortunately.
@ted hagan: the main reason that will never happen is because turkeys don’t vote for christmas. When Delaney and his counterpart meet up to discuss it which do you think would volunteer to resign? And N.I. have what they deem to be the priceless asset of being one of 8 votes on the rules committee along with wales, scotland and england. Reason number 1 you will never see a UK team and why they were so reluctant to even have one for the Olympics in London in case the rest of europe started asking why the heck do they have 4 teams.
@Ger: If NI had an anthem of their own, rather than using the English one, it would not have been booed. Why haven’t they changed to a more ‘inclusive’ anthem?
@Tanks a Minion: I guess they feel like they shouldn’t have to. If it’s their anthem it’s their anthem. The Irish fans don’t boo it when England are in town.
I don’t think making excuses for O’Neill is very productive, we might not have a great team but we have players good enough to perform better than they do and no matter what way you look at it that comes down to the manager.
Of course it was the ‘Delaney Out’ banners that finally did it. Better to pay off O’Neill and keep your own fat cat salary than bring anymore attention on your own situation. Supporters should continue to demand he walk. Useless buffoon!
John Delaney should be the one leaving the FAI, not Martin O’Neill or Roy Keane. If every home game was sold out Delaney wouldn’t care about results. He’s poisonous to the progression of Irish football at all ages and levels
Sack Delaney
@Shane Lad: Delaney would have to sack himself and that sadly wont happen. He has also surrounded himself with his cronies to make sure there is no coup
The main reason people have given for MON and Roy staying on is “the FAI can’t afford to pay them off”. Reality is, if the FAI have a half decent bean counter in the organisation (And Delaney is an accountant by trade himself) they will see that if you have 20,000 empty seats at games, and a ticket costs about €40-€50 that’s nearly a million right there a game. Which means the €3m or so it takes to pay the boys off supposedly will pay for itself in 3 home games.
The FAI can’t afford NOT to move them on, fro ma purely financial point of view, unless they genuinely think results are going to turn around pronto.
Yes Delaney is the problem….his first touch is awful
go ..go now . For the love of god ..please go
Sack Delaney
Sack Delaney
Sack Delaney
MON and Roy are gone
At the very least Roy Keane has to get the Heave Ho .
If Mick McCarthy is interested then he could replace O’Neill .
@Pl O’neill: why Keane ? He doesn’t pick the team or tatics ?
In the same tournament this Autumn, Denmark beat Wales twice, Wales beat Ireland twice, and Republic drew with Denmark twice.
One has to look at the positives, however small.
Get out Delaney you tw*t! Time for fresh ideas, new management by those who know what they are doing.
Stephen kenny in
Performances on the field have everything to do with attendances in the stands. And Delaney is being paid well to worry and do something about it. By the Way, Keane and O’Neill are a partnership team, and both should take the wrap. If the team were on a winning streak now, Keane would also be getting and taking credit for it. Must accept the bad with the good!
Pep Guardiola with Jürgen Kloop as his assistant could not fix our problems
@Adrianh_80: Holland just made the last 4 with the likes of Ryan Babel knocking around. Switzerland did also, with a team admittedly a lot more talented than Ireland’s but not exactly world beaters either. A team with mostly bottom of the premiership/top of championship level players can do very well at international level. Just look at teams like Sweden. It’s about having a plan and playing to your strengths. Take out the very elite, and the likes of san marino and the middle 80% of teams are all picking from lads who would not look out of place at burnley or brighton.
Didn’t he have ‘crunch talks’ with Trappatoni after Poland? Didn’t this lead to zero improvement and our worst humiliation on home soil?
They’re Gone!
O’Neill’s comments about “players having showed that they’re up for the big matches” is like something out of Monty Python. If he believes that then his delusion is indeed worse than we thought.
Get Stephen Kenny or Mick Mac in pronto.
@Colm O’Sullivan: Mick and Robbie I’ve heard. MOn and Roy will be gone by lunchtime.
The players are just awful, the results are awful, never have I seen such a bunch of losers, should be ashamed to wear the green jersey.
@Dav Nagle: the players are not awful. They play in 2 of the top leagues in Europe. No one expects trophies but we also don’t expect to be given the run around by the likes of Georgia and NI who have much worse players than we have
@Dav Nagle: It isn’t simply the players. Take a look at the Sweden side that defeated Russia last night. They have players from middle of the road sides in France, Greece, Russia etc. The only ‘big’ club and player in the side was Lindelof from Man Utd. O’Neill is a dinosaur who hasn’t moved on with how the game is now played. His insistence on getting the ball to Coleman or McClean and have them run like lunatics to see what transpires is nonsense. All have decent sides are playing pass and move. The players using their intelligence to make space and not lung bursting runs. Time to go Martin and Roy.
@David Clements: The players are average at best. Most look uncomfortable on the ball and lacking skill.
@Dav Nagle:
You know very little if that’s your take on the situation
For a pay rise.
Just been announced that they’ve “resigned”. Ding dong the witch is dead.
Cheers for the memories Martin
Poor Delaney!
He is grand!