Republic of Ireland rule out former Chelsea boss Roberto Di Matteo as their next manager after the 2012 Champions League winner was spotted in the stands with Irish FA CEO
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- Roberto Di Matteo watched the defeat to Switzerland from the stands
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The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) have ruled out Roberto Di Matteo as a candidate for the national team’s next permanent manager.
Di Matteo, who won the Champions League as interim coach with Chelsea in 2012, watched Ireland’s friendly against Switzerland at the Aviva Stadium on Tuesday night alongside FAI CEO Jonathan Hill.
The sight of the pair together swiftly led to speculation the former Italy international could be installed as Stephen Kenny’s replacement with odds on him being installed as Ireland’s new manager slashed from 80-1 to 20-1.
But the FAI subsequently confirmed to reporters that the former West Bromwich and Aston Villa boss was not in the running for the job.
The FAI have indicated they will name Kenny’s successor early next month and interim manager John O’Shea having attracted popular support over the last week or so.
Roberto Di Matteo (right) was spotted at the Aviva Stadium for Ireland’s friendly against Switzerland alongside FAI CEO Jonathan Hill (left)
The former Chelsea manager met Ireland great Packie Bonner (right)
Under the former Manchester United defender, Ireland drew 0-0 against Belgium on Saturday and lost 1-0 to Switzerland on Tuesday.
And O’Shea insisted he is ‘more than ready’ for management despite his spell as interim Republic of Ireland boss ending in disappointment.
‘My instinct would be that I’m more than ready and capable to be a manager.
O’Shea has vast experience of international football as a player – he was capped 118 times for Ireland – and has worked as a coach with both the Under-21s and the senior squad under Kenny as well as holding club roles with Reading, Stoke and Birmingham.
Asked if he would seek clarity from the FAI over his chances of being considered for the vacancy, the 42-year-old replied: “I think that’s something that we will obviously discuss later on.
‘For me, the full focus was on the two games, enjoy the moment, learn from it and really understand it, learn about myself in terms of how I cope with the situation, with the games, and learn do I want to do it more.
Interim manager John O’Shea insisted he was ready to take on the job full-time
Ireland lost 1-0 at home to Switzerland on Tuesday after drawing 0-0 with Belgium last week
‘And look, the emphatic answer from me would be, yes. But where that is, let’s wait and see.
‘As I’ve mentioned before, it’s only given me a taste for more, whether that be with Ireland or with club football or whatever the case may be.
‘It’s something I’ve loved every minute of and I’ve been fully engrossed with it. It’s just annoying that we didn’t get a win in either of the two games.’
