Republic of Ireland is hardly a footballing powerhouse in Europe and Steve Staunton was always facing a huge task in guiding the nation through to Euro 2008. So after almost two years in charge of the national team and failing to fulfill the ambition to take Republic of Ireland through to the European championships, Steve Staunton and the Football Association of Ireland have parted company by mutual consent.
But that hardly tempers the feeling that Staunton with his little expertise in big time football management was never the right man for the job. He did have the vastly experienced Sir Bobby Robson in the unit as International football Consultant but as the coach of the national team, he was responsible for the team’s performances which were miserable at best.
Republic of Ireland lie third in Group D of the Euro qualifiers and their chances of going through were always slim given the fact that Germany and the Czech Republic were also in the same group. The country’s faint hopes of creating an upset were dashed when they failed to beat Cyprus on October 17.
Staunton has been under tremendous pressure for most of the qualifying campaign and the Irish FA ran out of patience after this defeat. He replaced Brian Kerr in January 2006 which was actually a shock, given his little experience and fame.
Now that Staunton, along with Assistant Kevin MacDonald and goalkeeping coach Alan Kelly, has been removed from the picture, Republic of Ireland is looking towards a new era. Under-21 boss Don Givens is the current care-taker coach but he is expected to be replaced soon. Former Leeds and Aston Villa boss David O’Leary is the one who is being touted for the managerial job although some want another former Irish player Liam Brady to become the next manager of Republic of Ireland.
Image Source: BBC
Source: BBC
