It's not every day you here of managers who consider it a life goal to take the reigns of the Irish national football team, but sure enough, that's exactly what has happened today.
In a book titled 'Living on the Volcano, The Secrets of Surviving as a Football Manager' by Michael Calvin, former Reading and Leeds manager Brian McDermott revealed his regret at choosing to represent England over Ireland as a player, and stated that he wishes to make up for it by managing the country of his parents.
Born in Slough, England, to parents from Clare and Sligo, McDermott revealed that pressure from Arsenal captain Don Howe is what initially pushed him away from the Irish international set-up, but he dreams of one day working with the FAI as manager of the national side:
I never played for Ireland, which I should have done. Don Howe suggested I play for England under-17s. I wasn’t English, though I was born in Slough, I was Irish.
Don was the big man at Arsenal at the time. I had no confidence and just went along with it, almost to protect myself. Dad was worried about upsetting anyone. That’s a real driver for me now. My life goal is to manage Ireland.
McDermott guided Reading to promotion to the Premier League in 2012, but was eventually sacked for a poor run of results in the top-flight of English football, he then took over at Leeds, and was again sacked, this time for no reason other than Massimo Cellino took over and he was a bit mad.
Today, McDermott is chief scout for Arsenal, and it sounds as though he will eagerly be watching Ireland's progress in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers to see if Martin O'Neill remains in charge long-term.
via Irish Examiner.
