Martin O’Neill And Roy Keane Have “Parted Ways” With The FAI

Darragh Berry

Republic of Ireland managers, Martin O’Neill and his assistant Roy Keane have parted ways with the FAI on Wednesday morning.

O’Neill and Keane have been in charge of Ireland for five years but pressure has been put on the pair to resign following a disastrous Nations League campaign where they didn’t win one single game and failure to qualify for the World Cup in 2018.

The Board of the Football Association of Ireland announced that they have mutually agreed with Martin O’Neill to part company.

In a statement on their website, the FAI said that:

“O’Neill, who was first appointed to the position on November 5, 2013, most recently led the Republic of Ireland team to a draw away to Denmark in the final game of the new UEFA Nations League.

The management team of Roy Keane (assistant manager), Seamus McDonagh (goalkeeping coach), and Steve Guppy (assistant coach) have also parted company with the FAI.

O’Neill oversaw 55 games for Ireland during a five-year period and enjoyed unforgettable wins over World Champions Germany, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Italy, Austria and Wales. He ran the best EUROs campaign in Ireland’s history and followed that by making it out of a tough group to reach the play-offs for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

He used 65 players in that time, giving 28 of them their first senior caps.

FAI President Donal Conway said: “On behalf of the FAI Board, I would like to thank Martin, Roy, and the management team for their work with the Republic of Ireland team over the last five years.

‘Martin ensured that we enjoyed some great nights in the Aviva Stadium and on the road in Lille, Vienna, and Cardiff, which were fantastic high points for Irish football.’

FAI Chief Executive John Delaney paid tribute to O’Neill by saying: ‘I would like to thank Martin, Roy, and the management team for the impact that they had with the Ireland team. There have been many highlights during Martin’s reign – none more so than EURO 2016 in France, which will live long in the memory of all Irish supporters.

‘Martin did a great job guiding the team out of a difficult qualifying group – where we beat World Champions Germany along the way – to reach EURO 2016 and advance to the Last-16 following a historic victory over Italy in Lille.

‘I wish Martin, and the management team, the very best for the future.’

The FAI Board will meet promptly to discuss the process of recruiting a new manager.”