John O’Shea has been appointed interim head coach of the Republic of Ireland.
The Football Association of Ireland says it will appoint a permanent head coach in early April after the contract of the previous boss Stephen Kenny was not renewed when it expired last November.
Paul Clement, the former Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid assistant manager, is one of the names under consideration for the job. Current Bayern assistant Anthony Barry and England U21 coach Lee Carsley are also linked.
O’Shea will take charge of Ireland’s two March friendlies against Belgium and Switzerland and be assisted by Paddy McCarthy, who currently works as a coach at Crystal Palace.
“It will be an incredible honour to lead the side into the March international window,” said O’Shea. “As everyone will know, I’ve always had immense pride representing my country, whether that be during my playing career or very recently, as part of the coaching staff for the men’s senior team and the U21s.
John O’Shea worked under Wayne Rooney at Birmingham
It’s great that Paddy has agreed to come on board for the two matches and work will begin straight away to prepare for two top-quality fixtures against great opposition in Belgium and Switzerland, in front of our fantastic home support.
“I’ve got great belief in this group of players to win football matches and looking forward to some positive results.”
O’Shea, the former Man Utd, Sunderland and Reading player, won 118 caps for Ireland and is third on the all-time list of appearances. He rejoins the FAI having been an assistant coach under Kenny and worked as the U21 assistant manager to Jim Crawford.
The 42-year-old also has coaching experience in domestic football with Reading, Stoke City and most recently Birmingham City.
Ireland failed to qualify for Euro 2024 after finishing second-bottom in their group with six points from eight matches.
