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The best interim manager out there.
DION FANNING – 15 SEPTEMBER 2013
[SIZE=5]Martin O’Neill is believed to be the unanimous choice of the FAI’s Board of Management to succeed Giovanni Trapattoni[/URL] and he could be appointed [URL=‘http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Republic_of_Ireland_national_football_team’]Ireland manager this week.[/SIZE]
The board is due to meet early this week and while they will be expected to approve the pursuit of O’Neill, they will also be informed of other candidates in the race which now include former Valencia[/URL] and[URL=‘http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Inter_Milan’]Inter Milan[/URL] coach Hector Cuper. His British-based agent, [URL=‘http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Stephen_Morris’]Stephen Morris[/URL], confirmed to the Sunday Independent yesterday that the Argentinian was keen to become[URL=‘http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Republic_of_Ireland_national_football_team’]Ireland manager.
“Hector is extremely interested in the job,” Morris said. “If he was appointed he would move to Liverpool where our agency is based and he would attend matches from there.”
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD? SEE PAGES 2-3
Cuper’s grandparents are believed to have been Irish and he speaks good English. He won five caps for Argentina and made his name as a coach at Mallorca[/URL] where he reached the Cup Winners’ Cup final before he moved to Valencia and reached the Champions League final in successive seasons, losing to [URL=‘http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Real_Madrid’]Real Madrid[/URL] in 2000 and then in a penalty shootout to [URL=‘http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Bayern_Munich’]Bayern Munich a year later.
He moved on to Inter[/URL] where he finished second and third in [URL=‘http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Lega_Calcio_Serie_A’]Serie A, missing out on the league title on the final day of his first season by two points when they lost on the final day. The following year he reached the Champions League semi-final before losing to Milan. Cuper was dismissed in 2003 and he has struggled to make the same impact in management since.
Interestingly, he was manager of Georgia when Trapattoni’s Ireland faced them in World Cup qualifiers in 2008 and 2009 but he left without winning a single game. His last job with Turkish side Orduspor ended earlier this year.
Cuper is described as a “football obsessive” and is said to be very keen to do the job, and the FAI are aware of his interest.
His entrance into the race indicates that there is a broader demand for the job than the names initially mentioned but the FAI will only widen their search if O’Neill is not interested and decides he would prefer a return to club management.
In an interview with the Sunday Independent, FAI chief executive John Delaney dismissed the suggestion that his turbulent relationship with Roy Keane would prevent the former Ireland captain being considered. “The past is the past. We move on,” Delaney said.
In the unlikely event that O’Neill is not appointed, the FAI would then begin a process which would involve a thorough search across the world, boosted by Denis O’Brien’s support. Cuper’s entry into the race indicates that they could attract candidates of a high calibre if they were seeking an alternative to O’Neill.
Some within the FAI are surprised at the pace at which events moved last week. Once Trapattoni departed, O’Neill was always the preferred candidate.
Initially, it was seen as preferable but unlikely that he would take the job before the game in Cologne, but now it is considered probable that he will be appointed in time for the final two matches in the group next month.
Is financial backing from Denis O’Brien a guaranteed part of the job now?
Dunphy was interviewed by Darragh Maloney on the radio yesterday. He’s persisting with a few funny lines from the other night: including our midfield at the Euros should have been Andrews and either Hoolahan or Clark. Darragh couldn’t exactly argue with him but he did suggest a few times that they’re very different alternatives to Whelan.
wes isnt getting his game for Norwich these days
odd saviour of irish football. a Norwich reserve
I don’t want a man called Hector managing Ireland. That UUCOAM on 2FM would love it.
I have an inside line here. Lump on Jack Charlton making a return at 250/1.
Hector Cuper versus Martin O’Neill and O’Neill is first choice:(
What has impressed you about Cuper in recent years?
What has impressed you about O’Neill in recent years?
Getting a really poor Aston Villa team to successive good finishes in the EPL. Have you had a chance to look at Wikipedia to answer the question yet?
Was hardly a poor Villa team . Were paying the 6th highest wage bill in EPL and coming 6th . About right. I do still think o neill could do a job at internatiinal level. As long as he is kept well away from any chequebook.
I haven’t heard much about him since his Valencia and Inter days but he is hardly after regressing that badly. The reason Villa had an bad team was because O’Neill kept buying shite players
He left is gig with Georgia w/o winning a game. #wesayno2hector
So you’d be in favour of giving the job to Trapattoni so? He can hardly have regressed since his Juventus days.
I don’t think whoever comes in will do much better than Trap. Cuper according to that article has good English which is important in my opinion.
O’Neill saved Sunderland from certain relegation.
So do I but I am not looking for the job.
Senator David Norris could emerge as a shock contender so.