'I like p***ing people off': Bookies' favourite Mick McCarthy responds to West Brom links

Would this be “like trying to turn around an oil tanker with a canoe paddle”?

By Stephen Barry

Mick McCarthy is endlessly quotable.

But it's his words from February which come to mind upon hearing he's been linked with the West Brom job.

Commenting on Chris Coleman's appointment to relegation-threatened Sunderland, McCarthy said it was “like trying to turn around an oil tanker with a canoe paddle”.

However, McCarthy may soon find himself in a similar situation if the bookies' odds are anything to go by.

The former Ireland captain and manager is set to leave his job at Ipswich Town when his contract expires at the end of the season, a move which may come sooner judging by his quotes after their 2-2 draw with Millwall on Monday.

“The analogy I use is that I’ve never been in a driverless car – and I never, ever intend getting in one – but this must be what it feels like,” he said.

“The car is yours and the responsibility still lies with you, but you haven’t really got the control over it.

“I’m not enjoying it – no. I’m just being honest with how I feel. I’ll leave it at that, whatever happens, but I’m not enjoying it.

"There's a little bit of me that's died, I'm not going to tell a lie.”

As reported by the East Anglian Times, "When a journalist said to him ‘see you Thursday’ as he stood up to leave, he replied ‘good luck with that’."

Bookies have since slashed his odds on replacing the recently sacked West Brom boss Alan Pardew to as low as 9/4 - making him a marginal favourite ahead of Leicester City assistant manager Michael Appleton.

When asked about the possibility of a switch to the midlands, McCarthy told the Birmingham Mail: “The Albion? That would p*** a few people off wouldn’t it?

“But you know me, I like p***ing people off.”

West Brom appear to be preparing for life in the Championship as they find themselves ten points away from safety at the foot of the Premier League with only six games remaining.

McCarthy managed their local rivals Wolves for six years, making him an unpopular candidate among some supporters.