Chelsea fan Stephen Bradley sticking with Shamrock Rovers despite Millwall approach

Bradley and the Hoops are in London on the eve of their concluding Uefa Conference League game against Chelsea.

STAYING PUT: Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley at Stamford Bridge. Pic: ©INPHO/Laszlo Geczo

Stephen Bradley has confirmed he has no intention of quitting Shamrock Rovers amid interest from English Championship club Millwall.

The Hoops are in London on the eve of their concluding Uefa Conference League game against Chelsea but Millwall’s director of football, ex-Ireland U21 cap Steve Gallen, has designs on luring Bradley to the Den.

While flattered by the admiration, Bradley cited the ongoing leukaemia treatment for his son Josh as a blocker to fulfilling his career path.

He oversaw four league titles in a row before he turned 40 in November and has broken new ground by taking Rovers into the knockout stages of the Conference League in February.

They’ve guaranteed that playoff shot by accruing 11 points from 15 and an unlikely win against Enzo Maresca’s title contenders would catapult them there directly into the last-16 in March.

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Rovers fans will be glad to hear that their boss seems committed to sticking around for that unchartered territory, brushing off speculation about a move to England.

One of the club’s main shareholders Dermot Desmond was instrumental in convincing Bradley to reject the advances of Lincoln City but Millwall are a tier above in the Championship.

“It’s nice when you hear people speak nice of you and admire what we’ve done in the last few years,” said the Hoops boss.

“I have made no secret about the fact that I want to challenge myself at the highest level, and I have never shied away from that.

“I have had a number of approaches over the last 18 months from clubs, but I have also made it very clear that my son has been battling cancer and that’s my number one priority and has been.

“Thankfully and hopefully we are nearly finished. But my son, my family and his illness comes before anything, and nothing will ever change that.”

He added: “Do I want to better myself and be the best manager I can be and challenge myself? Of course I do, 100 percent I do. But for that to happen, everything has to be right.

"I’m 40, I’m not 60 - thinking it has to happen tomorrow. I’m still developing, still learning, let’s see what the future holds for me.”

Bradley revealed he was indeed a Chelsea fan and the Blues were close to signing him as a teen.

“Years back I remember travelling with the first team to the (1997) FAI Cup final against Middlesbrough when Roberto Di Matteo scored after 43 seconds. I got to train with legends like John Terry.

“At the time at Chelsea, there was no real culture of young Irish players there, and I didn’t want to be the first one in a long time to do that so Chelsea were brilliant to me.

"I travelled to many tournaments, played with them a lot, yeah a lot of happy memories and it was a tough one at the time to turn them down.

“But Liam Brady at Arsenal was special at his job at that point in time, academy director.

“He got what it took to make a big club like Arsenal feel like a family and that makes an impression on young players, especially when you’re leaving home, and it certainly made an impression on me when I was 14 making that decision.”