Will the bargain have been worth it when Faust calls in the loan?, asks Enda McEvoy.

Even though Pep has reiterated his commitment to a club to which he is contracted until the summer of 2021, his body language this season says differently, writes Liam Brady.

Jon Jonsson went missing a day after arriving in the city with his fiancée for a poker tournament.

The change of guard on the the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) board will continue in the coming weeks as Paddy Dempsey is set to replace John Earley as the schoolboys' sector delegate.

John Giles was excused Premier League punditry duty tonight to be granted the freedom of the city of Leeds.

Frank! Incensed! Mirth!

A warning to all those disenchanted Arsenal fans heaving a sigh of relief that the Unai Emery era has drawn to a close: while there are a number of credible candidates who could take his place, I don’t think there is a manager out there possessed of the kind of magic wand which would be needed to cure all the club’s ills overnight. Or, for that matter, any time soon.

Liam Brady is "looking forward to a good row with the lads", after it was confirmed that the famous RTÉ football panel will be back in the harness next week — on Premier Sports.

Fionnuala McCormack will carry the medal hopes for the Irish at the European Cross Country on Sunday, December 8, the 35-year-old announced on an Irish team of 40 for the event in Lisbon.

There have been bigger days in Fionnuala McCormack’s career, but few that felt as sweet. Not only did the 35-year-old stamp her supremacy over her rivals at today’s National Cross Country Championships in Abbotstown, winning her ninth senior title, but she was able to share the podium with her younger sister Una.

“Will it be a tale of goalkeepers?” George Hamilton intones portentously as the camera zooms in on Kasper Schmeichel. “Will it be a tale of goalscorers?”

Paul Dowling assesses the performances of Ireland's players in the 1-1 draw with Denmark.

Relations between the FAI and Brian Kerr have been strained further after the former Ireland manager angrily rejected an offer to become a “media watchdog” for the association.

Forty years on, they still talk about those five minutes.

A fantastic first-half strike from former Cork City striker Mark O’Sullivan proved the difference as Avondale United lifted the FAI Intermediate Cup for the seventh time in 14 years.

Here's your morning bulletin.

It’s never a good day for Manchester United when they lose to Liverpool but to offer such a toothless display and be beaten so comprehensively by their bitter rivals, as they were in the 3-1 defeat at Anfield on Sunday, was clearly the final nail in the coffin for Jose Mourinho, writes Liam Brady.

Quinn said he'd be happy to work for an independent league, but not for the FAI.

If you remember, it was Muhammad Ali started it, not Mick McCarthy or Ian Evans or even Tom Humphries’ interview.

Snippets of last night’s display in Poland offered encouragement for Ireland’s Nations League rescue mission yet the questions about Martin O’Neill’s leadership won’t dissipate.

A great power was given to Roy Keane. A power that can be dispensed in a look. By just making the face.

“And does it mean anything more than that we have a very good team and an even better manager? Probably not, although I’d like to make the point – not for the first time – that there’s nothing wrong with Britain. It’s just the politicians who keep letting us down.”

The lads done well… Liam Brady is the latest ex-Irish international to show that talking a good game can be very lucrative after hanging up the boots.

Former Arsenal Academy chief Liam Brady says Arsenal passed up on the opportunity to sign Harry Kane because he “was a bit chubby”.

The World Cup play-off defeat by Denmark cast Irish football into another period of introspection. Where are the players? 

Liam Brady previews today’s Premier League meeting of Arsenal and Man Utd in the context of the contrasting fortunes and football philosophies of rival managers Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho.

Here's your morning news bulletin...

Liam Brady believes the lack of emerging talent is linked to Kerr’s absence from an active role in Irish football and that he should be brought back into the fold.

Right, here we go. Time to give the checklist a final once-over.

If they beat us to go to the World Cup, we’ll cry for six months, writes Enda McEvoy

Things took an unusual turn, for a Liam Brady column, on the morning of Cardiff.

Job done, for now, Martin O’Neill’s Republic of Ireland players turn their attention back to domestic matters for the next four weeks, all too aware of the need to impress with their clubs before the World Cup play-offs swing around.

Catch up on this morning's headlines...

Liam Brady believes Ireland’s victory fully vindicates the FAI’s decision to agree a contract extension with Martin O’Neill.