FAI Board to be briefed on setbacks in search for new manager

TOP CHOICE: Lee Carsley was identified as the most suitable person for the post but discussions with the England U21 manager haven't so far reached a satisfactory outcome. Pic: Lewis Storey/Getty Images

Today’s FAI board meeting will conclude with a statement on the men’s team manager but not the name of a contender to be anointed.

It had been planned within their own timetable for a preferred candidate to be presented to the 12 directors for ratification but a couple of setbacks in their pursuit have delayed the conclusion.

All dozen of the directors, including new Chairman Tony Keohane, will convene in-person to hear the update from Director of Football Marc Canham.

He, along with chief executive Jonathan Hill and board member Packie Bonner were in England last week discussing the role with their shortlisted options.

Lee Carsley was identified as the most suitable person for the post but discussions with the England U21 manager haven't so far reached a satisfactory outcome.

It’s understood that time will be devoted to the reasons for this blockage, which is considered retrievable rather than a flat refusal.

There’s less obstruction to appointing the back-up option, Neil Lennon, but the headhunters are determined to exhaust all avenues before settling on the chosen one.

The hope declared by Hill in December was for a new manager to be installed in time for Thursday week’s UEFA Nations League draw in Paris. That group will schedule Ireland’s six League B fixtures between September and November, all coming after two double-header friendlies.

With the first of those coming into focus in late March, when Euros-bound Belgium and Switzerland visit Lansdowne Road, the clock is ticking for an appointment of both manager and his backroom staff.  The first of the June friendlies will be at home against Hungary.

It is probable the recruiters will express confidence in landing their man within a few weeks, rather than the search extending for months and mirroring some of the marathon hunts for predecessors.

Also on the agenda on the summit are two other vital topics.

Firstly, Canham is to furnish his Football Pathway Plan, a charter spanning a decade recommending modern structures, while the controversy around Hill’s repaid sum for accepting pay in lieu of untaken holidays will get an airing.

Both Canham’s public launch and Hill’s appearance before the Government’s Public Accounts Committee are pencilled in two days apart on February 20 and 22.

Meanwhile, it’s believed Casement Park is edging closer to being abandoned as a venue for the Euro 2028 finals.

UEFA are keen for clarity on stadia and against the political backdrop no firm imminent date on construction starting is available ahead of high-level meetings in Paris next week.

Northern Ireland’s withdrawal from the co-hosting would all but confirm the Republic’s participation in the finals.

Indications are that UEFA will reserve two hosting spots back after England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland try to qualify through the regulation series.