O’Shea stays focused on making his mark in a role he clearly doesn’t want to leave

On the eve of his final game as Ireland’s interim manager, John O’Shea seemed content to leave the impression that the experience had heightened his personal ambitions.

The 42-year-old is intelligent enough to know how his words will be interpreted. He could easily have arrived into the Abbotstown conference room and spoken of how he had enjoyed the opportunity to play his part with this group before handing the reins to the next man.

And it’s possible he will strike that tone once this evening’s showdown with Switzerland is out of the way.

But before Dara O’Shea’s end-ofpress conference declaration that the squad would like the next manager to understand what it means to represent Ireland, with a nod to the temporary boss sitting to his left on the top table, there was already enough in the former Manchester United defender’s musings to draw the conclusion that he would be reluctantly stepping aside rather than willingly doing so.

We were given an early indication of that when he completely sidestepped a harmless enough softball question about the quality of the squad that Stephen Kenny’s full-time successor will inherit.

Instead, O’Shea steered clear of embracing that sentiment. “I am focusing on the last game against Switzerland, my focus has been on that right from the start when this process started,” he responded.

In a follow-up, he explained why he was treating these friendly encounters with the utmost seriousness and may not be engaging in experimentation for the sake of it.

“My remit was to focus on these two games,” he said. “If my remit beforehand was, ‘John, you’re the full-time new manager’, it might have been a different situation. The focus for me was, ‘These two games John, look after these games and see what happens then.’”

O’Shea stressed there had been no discussions with director of football Marc Canham that have suggested the picture has changed. The FAI line remains that a swift appointment is around the corner. Still, it’s abundantly obvious that O’Shea would back himself to step into the gig if he was given the nod. Naturally enough, a week doing the role is going to invite queries about how difficult he might find it to walk away. Appointing a stopgap option who would fancy the job permanently is always going to create that debate.

O’Shea has not agreed to be a number two to anyone else, much as the FAI were keen to keep him around the set-up after Kenny departed.

“There could be a discussion about any scenario going forward,” he said, still leaving that door open. “But this experience has only enhanced what I’d always been planning, what I’ve always wanted to (do).

“Ultimately, when you get a taste of it, enjoy it and are motivated by it, why wouldn’t you want more of it? That’s what I’ve been planning for.”

Taste

In a more direct way, he was asked if he would be OK with stepping aside. “I wouldn’t be really OK with it no,” he admitted. “But that’s why I’ve my full focus on the two games, that was my idea right from the start but ultimately when you get a taste of it, like I mentioned, you really enjoy it but I know in my head what I signed up for at the start and whatever happens after the Switzerland game will happen.

“If we get a win against Switzerland, if we get that good result, we can talk about things afterwards. But I’m fully focused on Switzerland and whatever happens afterwards, we’ll have a discussion.”

There were a few other things raised in the course of his Monday morning chat. He referenced advice from Alex Ferguson, who told him to ‘trust his instincts’ and also delved into the tricky subject of the FAI’s ticketing strategy for this March window.

A decision to place individual tickets for the Swiss game on sale represents a climbdown from a pre-Belgium strategy of only selling duo packages.

It didn’t go down well, especially for those with a distance to travel.

“My own mates from Waterford were giving out to me about it as well,” said O’Shea, who then diplomatically expressed the wish that solutions are found in future.

The one area where he did invite broader reflection was opening out

‘If we get that good result, we can talk about things afterwards’

on the differences between being the number one and the assistant roles he has filled with Ireland, Reading, Birmingham and Stoke. Ultimate responsibility for team selection topped the list.

“Obviously that’s different when you’re talking to your coaches about your approach to the game and then speaking to the players,” he continued. “Maybe those who were thinking they might be in the team etc. Just to have that conversation and the reasons why certain players were picked to start ahead of them. In general, that would be the main thing.

“Then, talking to your good selves every couple of days, getting used to being asked the same questions in different ways, different angles, having that approach. I’d amazing experience and education in that sense at Champions League press conferences from an early age, dealing with that.”

Hence, that awareness of the power of the words. Personnel-wise, O’Shea said there have been no calls from concerned club bosses, but on Saturday he did hint at tweaks with Gavin Bazunu likely to come in and a refreshment of wing-back areas a possibility. Mikey Johnston should start too.

Debuts will not be handed out liberally, even though critics of that policy would argue O’Shea has nothing to lose. He may not see it that way.