While the FAI have plenty of issues to sort out at the moment, the appointment of new managers for both the Republic of Ireland men's and women's team is the main topic of conversation among the public.
Eileen Gleeson has done a brilliant job while in charge of the WNT on an interim basis, leading them to six wins out of six during their UEFA Nations League campaign. She already holds a role as the head of women's and girl's football within the FAI, although it is thought she may now step into the managerial position on a more permanent basis.
The future of the men's Ireland manager role is less clear.
Numerous names have been linked with the gig, with the likes of Neil Lennon, Lee Carsley, Roy Keane, and Steve Bruce among the favourites. Bruce has already made his interest in the position, as has Lennon and Sam Allardyce.
No candidate has emerged from the pack as of yet, but the timeframe of the next appointment could give a hint as to the most likely appointment as things stand.
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Ireland manager appointment date could hint at move for one candidate
The FAI AGM took place over the weekend, with the appointment of the new managers among the topics up for conversation when FAI CEO Jonathan Hill spoke to the media.
He revealed that they expect to make an announcement on the women's team before Christmas. As for the men's side, he said that they want to have someone in place February ahead of the two friendlies that take place the following month.
There’s a good group of players with a mixture of youth and experience there.
If the individual involved gets to work with them in a way that they work, and they have an approach and a philosophy in how they deal with players, all of them (candidates) have been extremely excited at the prospect, and rightly so.
The March friendlies are really important preparatory games. The sooner we can get an appointment made the better, but we won't rush the process.
We have made a really good start already, but we would like to get them in place so they can start getting their coaching team together and start thinking about their opponents in March and June.
By February we will know who their opponents are for the Nations League. We know we’re in League B so could draw England or Wales, matches that would sell out.
The Nations League is very important in relation to future qualification processes for future tournaments. From February, you definitely want someone working full time in relation to those opponents.
The mention of February as the month that a new manager is likely to be appointed is an interesting one. That is still two months away, suggesting that the candidate may be unavailable until that period of time. It makes a move for the likes of Bruce, Keane, and Lennon (all of whom are unattached) seem less likely.
Lee Carsley is a candidate for the job that is currently employed elsewhere. However, considering the England U21s do not play again until March, there would be nothing stopping him from being appointed well before February.
Could it hint at Chris Hughton being appointed as the next Ireland manager?
The 65-year old is currently the manager of Ghana, who will play at the African Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast next month. His stint at that tournament will be finished by February 11th at the latest.
While Hughton has a contract in place with Ghana until the end of 2024, there has already been growing discontent in the nation surrounding his performance in the role. A less than satisfactory showing at AFCON could see him removed from the position, especially when you consider that Ghana have a history of short-term coaching appointments (they have had nine permanent managers since 2010).
Chris Hughton has only been in charge of the nation since February, although he did spend 12 months in their setup prior to that. However, considering the unstable nature of his current role and his history with Ireland as both a player and a coach, he may well be intrigued by the prospect of linking up with Ireland once again.
As well as that, the Irish Independent reported this morning that Hughton has backers within the FAI 'at board level'. That is likely to be a telling factor in deciding the next manager.
Combined all of these factors together, and all of a sudden it looks like the stars may be aligning for Chris Hughton to be the next Ireland manager.
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