Speculation regarding Mick McCarthy and the vacant Ireland manager’s job continues apace in the Irish press this morning.
The Irish Independent claims the FAI have set an annual budget of €1.2 million (just over £1 million) to fund the wages of Giovanni Trapattoni’s successor, with billionaire businessman Denis O’Brien again understood to be helping to finance the appointment.
However, it’s said that any compensation which would be payable to Town for McCarthy, or to another club should their boss be the man they want, would come from that figure.
How much Town would want for McCarthy, who is contracted until June 2015, is unknown but it’s claimed it would be somewhere between €500,000 and €1 million.
An Ireland player is also said to have been told that McCarthy is the frontrunner by an FAI official last week: "The impression from the conversation was clear — that Mick will get the job."
Meanwhile, the FAI’s headhunters, Ray Houghton and Ruud Dokter, are reportedly going through a short-list of candidates, which is believed to include the likes of Hector Cuper, Walter Zenga, Alex McLeish, Dick Advocaat and Carlos Quieroz, while it’s claimed two Premier League bosses have been contacted but are no longer being considered for the job.
Elsewhere, it’s reported that initial favourite Martin O’Neill will pull out of the race this week, having opted against taking the role which seemed his a month ago and that the FAI will make an approach to Town regarding McCarthy this week offering €500,000 in compensation.