OH, but to be a fly on the wall when Michael O’Neill, sometime in the very near future, sits down opposite the SFA party headed by Stewart Regan.
What can be guaranteed is that the most stringent of interviews is going to take place. No stone unturned, every question will insist on a concise answer and the interviewee better have all facts, figure and the rest at their fingertips.
Or O’Neill will walk away.
Make no mistake; the one who will be asking the big questions will be the Northern Irishman. He is going to interview the SFA. It won’t be the other way around.
It is now obvious Regan and his cohorts view the current Northern Ireland manager as the one, the saviour, who can turnaround the failing fortunes of the Scotland international team.
If they are right, if the 48-year-old from Portadown is indeed the manager to take our country to the European Championship in 2020, then they better not blow it.
Perhaps not since Walter Smith in 2004 has a potential Scotland manager held as much sway when entering into such talks.
O’Neill has options, although he won’t go near Sunderland, and so for him to move from his native to adopted country, certain assurances must be given to him.
O’Neill is happy to at least have an informal chat when he will size up what he’s letting himself in for. And don’t for a moment think his only concerns will be about what the best eleven is or whether Scott Brown is going to retire again.
Regan and the rest will be asked about their future plans, and the solutions better meet the immovable high standards of their first choice candidate.
If the job does appeal to O’Neill, his remit, in his own eyes, won’t only be the senior team.
He will demand to know everything there is to know about the youth development all the way down to the youngster level.
The much-talked about and little understood Project Brave shall be picked over. There is every chance O’Neill and Malky Mackay would have to meet before any deal is done.
He wants a four-year deal, the IFA are willing to offer an improved contract beyond 2020 when his current one ends, and his own backroom staff, which will include Hearts assistant Austin McPhee.
O’Neill, who lives in Edinburgh, likes the idea of being Scotland manager. However, he will do his homework and if his potential employees don’t fulfil the required criteria, the SFA may have to turn to someone else
Here is a story told to me about how he managed Kyle Lafferty, not the easiest character to coach, during the successful 2016 European Championship campaign.
Before every game, O’Neill would place a tablet in his striker’s hands and make him watch footage, no longer than a couple of minutes, of his better moments. This rather simple psychology worked wonders.
He was in constant contact with his fringe and injured players – did Gordon Strachan ever do this?
What’s more, he brought people together.
“Let’s say Catholics, for whatever reason, previously didn’t want to go to Windsor Park because it’s where Linfield play and all the other stuff, and so if more want to come to our games because they now feel part of it then that’s brilliant,” said Jimmy Nicholl, O’Neill’s right-hand man.
Of course, just because he once took one small country with limited resources to a European Championship, and was done out of a World Cup by a dreadful refereeing decision, doesn’t mean he can do the same for Scotland.
However, O’Neill is a miracle worker. It’s exactly what we need.
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