With the March international window now in the rearview mirror, we should get some clarity on who the FAI intend to appoint as the next Ireland manager.
Marc Canham said earlier this month that an appointment would be made in early April, with a deal close to being finalised but could not be confirmed due to existing 'contractual obligations'.
That suggested that the next Ireland manager was involved with another nation during the most recent international window, although England U21 boss and favourite for the role Lee Carsley would soon rule himself out of the running. Gus Poyet is now considered the most likely candidate, with the Uruguayan set to leave his role as Greece manager after their Euro 2024 play-off loss to Georgia.
However, considering how the process has gone up to this point, those mentions of a 'contractual obligations' should perhaps be taken with a pinch of salt.
Many feel that John O'Shea is still in the frame for the job on a permanent basis despite an underwhelming interim spell, with another name having apparently been given plenty of consideration by the FAI.
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Roy Keane very much in frame for Ireland manager role
The Irish Examiner are reporting that Roy Keane met with the FAI on three occasions to discuss the vacant Ireland manager role, suggesting that the Cork man was very much in the running to be appointed to the position.
Keane has not managed a team since leaving Ipswich Town in 2011, although he has had a number of assistant roles since then. That includes a five-year spell with Ireland under Martin O'Neill.
The 51-year old has expressed an interest in the Irish job in the recent past, most notably during his appearances on Stick to Football. While he clearly has no 'contractual obligations' in a coaching sense, one would wonder if his lucrative deals as a pundit would have stood in the way of him potentially taking the job at an earlier date.
For the FAI, appointing Roy Keane as the next Ireland manager could well be a fruitful one from a financial point of view. He is the biggest name in Irish football and having him on board would open quite a few commercial doors, something the Association would take into account considering their mixed results in that area in recent years.
The most concerning aspect of any potential Keane appointment would be his lack of recent experience as a manager. He was not known for his tactical nouse at Sunderland or Ipswich, with the game having developed quite a bit over the last decade. In saying that, it may be felt that implementing a strong coaching team around the former Manchester United star could ease those concerns.
The fact that he met three times with the FAI certainly shows that he was (at least at one point) a serious candidate for the job. In contrast, longtime bookies' favourite Lee Carsley met with them only once during the process, back in November.
It remains to be seen if he is still in the running.
The FAI announcing Roy Keane as their mystery man at the start of next month would certainly send quite a few shockwaves around Irish football.
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