D-DAY FOR O’NEILL
SCOTLAND expect a decision from Michael O’Neill today — with their chances of landing him as national team manager hanging in the balance.
The Northern Ireland boss took the weekend to make up his mind, with a number of sources across the Irish Sea briefing that they expected a decision as early as last night.
With key figures in the Scottish and Irish FAs flying out to Switzerland for meetings and workshops ahead of this week’s UEFA Nations League draw, O’Neill (pictured) was put under pressure to make a decision.
The IFA wanted to know if they could expect to have a manager in attendance at the draw, while the
SFA are keen not to have the issue still up in the air when chief executive Stewart Regan is put in front of a travelling media contingent with only one question dominating their thoughts.
O’Neill had a first face-to-face meeting with Regan last week, which had been the next major step in negotiations that have been going on for weeks.
The IFA have offered O’Neill a lucrative new contract worth almost twice as much as the money on offer with Scotland.
But the lure of a more highprofile job, and the opportunity to finally end Scotland’s lengthy absence from a major finals, prompted the Edinburgh-based coach — who led his home nation to Euro 2016 — to answer the calls from Regan.
The SFA have already agreed to pay compensation of £500,000 should O’Neill agree to fill a post left vacant since Gordon Strachan’s departure back in October.
The new Scotland manager’s opening schedule of fixtures was confirmed yesterday, meanwhile, including a summer tour of South America and of Central America, which is straight out of the O’Neill playbook.
Scotland will face Costa Rica — who famously humbled Andy Roxburgh’s men in our opening game of Italia ’90 — in Scotland on Friday, March 23, and will travel to Budapest to take on Hungary four days later.
More eye-catching, though, are the end-of-season friendlies away to Peru on May 29 and Mexico on June 2 — two nations who will go on from there to feature in the World Cup finals in Russia.
O’Neill famously took Northern Ireland on a tour of South America in 2014, losing both games against Uruguay and Chile — but gaining experience regularly cited as a turning point in his leadership of his national team.
Speaking about the Scotland fixtures yesterday, SFA chief executive Regan said: ‘We are delighted to have secured such exciting opposition for our matches and I am looking forward to seeing the Scotland team continue on its current upward trajectory.
‘I am sure our fans will relish away trips to Hungary, Peru and Mexico and will be thoroughly looking forward to a longoverdue rematch against Costa Rica.’
Whether former Dundee United and Hibernian player O’Neill is the man in charge for those matches and beyond remains to be seen, with bosses at Hampden having invested the last few months in trying to ensure that he is the man to replace Strachan.