Martin O’Neill plays down contract delay
And he also predicted that, when negotiations do intensify, he and John Delaney “will get things through”.
But pointing out his current contract actually extends until Ireland’s interest ends at Euro 2016, O’Neill also went so far as to suggest it might not even be essential to get the deal done before the summer. “This is the whole point, it never has been for me,” he said.
Revealing that talks with the FAI have still to move past the preliminary stage, he said: “I don’t think there’s any great difficulty. We qualified and then we had Christmas coming up and I had a couple of personal things to attend to in January. I just went away there for a break.
“Coming back, I really don’t see it being an issue at all. There’s only been preliminary discussions but I left them on hold myself only because I was going away. It’s not been an issue at all.
“I’m actually contracted anyway until we are actually knocked out of the competition so at this minute it’s only a matter of having some discussions and taking it on from there. It’s never been a big issue for me throughout my career, never mind anything else. I’ve tended, for the most part, to stick to contracts.”
This week’s media concentration on the news Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill has agreed a lucrative new deal with the IFA was not lost on his Republic counterpart.
“I see you were comparing or contrasting me with Michael O’Neill having signed,” he told a journalist at the home of FAI sponsors Celtic Pure in Shercock, who were unveiling plans for a new €5 million bottling facility.
“He’s just signed, hasn’t he, and he had a month on me, didn’t he? So there you go — I’ve got a month. I think I will sit down at some stage or another with John Delaney and we will get things through.”
Mischievously asked if, like Michael O’Neill, he felt he might be in line for a 90% pay rise, the other O’Neill played a straight bat. “Well, I think what Michael has done with the Northern Ireland squad, with their qualification, if he has got a 90% rise then well done to him, well done.”
Asked about the theory his own contract could include a clause allowing him to leave if a club job came up, O’Neill replied: “I have not discussed it and, hopefully, it is not a matter of procrastination. But, do you know, if that is the case, I think you would want to be a bit more open about those particular things. I don’t want to have about 15 or 16 clauses in contracts and stuff like this here. I think that is the way John and myself will discuss it.”
O’Neill was also entirely dismissive of the notion the Irish players might be affected by uncertainty about their manager’s future.
“Do you know what? I am so cynical I don’t think anything like that bothers players. I don’t think they give a monkey’s who’s the manager as long as they are in the team. I might be a wee bit over the top there. I think there are one or two players who might actually believe I have helped along the way. And certainly when they come, I think they genuinely want to play for their country, which is great, really important. And I think they get some sort of enjoyment out of playing. But the enjoying comes from winning the games. That’s the main enjoyment they get.”
As to his assistant Roy Keane’s thinking on his own long-term future with the national team, O’Neill claimed: “Honestly, we did not discuss it, and I think he’s got an open mind to everything at this moment.”
Meanwhile, O’Neill continues to sharpen focus on his squad selection for the Euros. “I’ve got to pick 23 players and we’ve a couple of games coming up in March which I’m going to use as experimentation but certainly to bring in players who’ve been in and around the scene for a while but maybe not played too much.
“There will be a group of players — I think of all us in this room could pick 10, maybe 12 — we all agree would be there (in France), injury apart. But there are definitely places up for grabs and that’s where form comes into consideration. It’s something I’d genuinely have to consider— players who are in decent form, players who are playing pretty regularly. I’d say if there are decisions to be made about certain people or if it’s a close decision with someone, I think the person who played more often or who is much, much fitter would stand a better chance of being selected.”
And with the games against Switzerland and Slovakia at the Aviva next on the agenda, O’Neill held out some encouragement for Richie Towell, who has struggled to make an impact at Brighton since his move from Dundalk, and perhaps also — although he didn’t name him — another recent League of Ireland export Chris Forrester.
“I think he (Towell) has only played the one time for the side and that would be a wee bit frustrating for him considering he’s enjoyed terrific success at Dundalk and he would have gone to Brighton on an absolute high. So it will be disappointing for him at this moment and I understand that.
“Maybe his breakthrough time is just around the corner, you don’t know, but I wouldn’t rule out someone of that ilk at this minute. In fact there’s a possibility that for one of the two games I would bring someone like that into the squad, at least to have them around and maybe even participate in one of the games.”
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