The painstakingly long wait for a new Ireland national football team manager looks set to continue further as yet another potential candidate has ruled himself out of the running.
Georgia boss Willy Sagnol had been long rumoured to be on the FAI's radar as someone to replace Stephen Kenny as Ireland manager with his impressive spell spent with the Caucasus nation so far.
The former French international led Georgia to their first ever major tournament, beating Ireland's qualifying rivals Greece on penalties in Tbilisi in March to qualify for Euro 2024 in a huge upset.
It's been presumed in any quarters that the FAI's Marc Canham has been very interested in employing Sagnol as replacement to Stephen Kenny, only for the result against Greece to scupper their plans.
As Sagnol's side prepared for their opening game of the tournament against Turkey in Dortmund, he was asked about his future in management in his pre-match press conference where he shut the door on rumours linking him away from Georgia.
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Willy Sagnol happy with Georgia
During Sagnol's press conference, the Irish Independent's Dan McDonnell asked the Frenchmen about his employment plans after this current tournament.
Sagnol responded that while right now mightn't be the time to discuss his future moves, he appreciates working with the Georgian FA and that he is enjoying his time managing the country.
"You know, as you can imagine, it’s really not the moment to talk about it, I’m every day talking with my boss in Georgia, my president, vice president and the situation is very clear between each other.
"It looks like they appreciate working with me and I also use this time to say that I appreciate working with them.
"It’s not the right time for it (discussion about his future) but I very much appreciate working in Georgia, the way it is. And of course, I can consider myself working in Georgia for Georgia for the next years.”
After their game with Turkey today, Georgia will face Czechia and Portugal as they hope to advance in Group F and reach the knockout stages in their first ever tournament.
It appears the FAI meanwhile will have to chalk Sagnol's name off the list and continue their hunt for a permanent manager as the search reaches its seventh month.
The visit of England to the Aviva in early September is a truly daunting prospect.
