Pretty sure no one expected this name to get a mention
The Republic of Ireland are looking for a new manager after the mutually agreed departure of Martin O’Neill on Wednesday and Carlos Queiroz is reportedly interested in the position.
According to Miguel Delaney, writing in The Independent, the Iran manager is keen on taking the vacant role.
Queiroz will leave his current post in January after the Asian Cup, and sources close to the Portuguese coach have reportedly confirmed his interest in succeeding Martin O’Neill, who left his position on Wednesday morning.
The former Manchester United assistant coach has achieved success with the Iranian national team over the last eight years. He helped them reach the World Cup in 2014 and again in 2018, and made them competitive in games against more illustrious opponents.
Before Iran, the 65-year-old was Portugal coach between 2008 and 2010.
Queiroz will be most familiar to football fans in this part of the world from his time as Manchester United assistant manager.
He helped make Alex Ferguson’s team more defensively sound in domestic competition and in Europe, with Ferguson delegating a lot of coaching responsibility to his former assistant.
In between spells at Old Trafford, Queiroz was the Real Madrid manager for one season.
It remains to be seen if he is a serious contender to replace O’Neill, who left his role alongside Roy Keane, his former assistant.
As it currently stands, former Ireland manager and most recently Ipswich coach Mick McCarthy is the favourite to replace O’Neill. However, Queiroz’s pedigree means he may come into consideration.
