Josh Cullen excited about Heimir Hallgrimsson's 'new ideas'

Hallgrmsson's first game in charge of Ireland will be against England on September 7

Josh Cullen has been given a ringing endorsement of his new Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson by a Burnley teammate.

Johann Gudmundsson was part of the Iceland side that his compatriot co-managed to the quarter-finals of Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup as standalone boss.

He’s a colleague of Ireland midfielder Cullen at Burnley, the Championship club who’ve begun their quest for immediate promotion with two emphatic wins over Luton Town and Cardiff City.

The FAI took eight months from the departure of Stephen Kenny to finally appoint a manager and the Hallgrimsson era commences shortly with a tantalising clash against England on September 7.

It’s a rematch of Iceland’s finest hour – the last-16 scalping at the France-hosted Euro – and kickstarts six Uefa Nations League games until they conclude at Wembley on November 17.

Cullen will be named in Hallgrimsson’s first game, a home double-header including the visit of Greece three days later, and is looking forward to working with the new manager.

“I’ve spoken to Johann about him and I’ve only heard good things; positive things of how he is as a coach and a person,” said the 36-times cap midfielder.

“I haven’t spoken to him (the new manager) yet, We’ve got a good young squad of up-and-coming players and we’ll be working our best to get a result in front of our fans.

“Before you know it the international window is coming up thick and fast, so it won’t be long before we’re all meeting up for the England game to kick that Nations League campaign off.

“It’s a great game to look forward to. I know the Aviva (Stadium) will be bouncing. The atmosphere will be incredible for that game.” 

“To test ourselves against one of the best teams in the world is going to be a good chance to see where we’re at.” 

Resets apply to Cullen for club and country. The manager who brought the 28-year-old with him from Anderlecht to Burnley in 2022 was enticed to Bayern Munich over the summer, triggering a change at Turf Moor.

“I’ve got a new manager (Scott Parker) at club level, so there’s always a freshness when that happens,” he told Sportsboom.com   “And it’s the same at international level, I think everyone will be excited to get in and learn about the new manager.

“It’s new ideas for us and, ahead of a new campaign, I think ‘excitement’ is the main word to describe how I’m feeling about my international future as well.

“I haven’t had two new managers at the same time before. It’s an exciting time on the club and international front as well. I’m looking forward to getting going with both of them.”