The ex-Ireland international is expected to return to the job as O’Neill resigns.
In light of the news that Martin O’Neill has left his post as manager of the Republic of Ireland national team, bookies have slashed odds on Mick McCarthy returning to his old job. He’s odds-on to be the next manager, as short as 1/2 in places.
After his five year spell at Ipswich came to a dismal end at the close of last season, the Barnsley-born ex-Republic of Ireland international has been linked with numerous clubs since April.
Mick McCarthy was a popular manager for the national side, taking over in 1996. He led the team to the 2002 World Cup before infamously falling out with captain Roy Keane the day before the tournament and resigning in November of that year. McCarthy would likely enjoy the irony of taking over as Keane departs from his position as assistant manager.
Dundalk manager Stephen Kenny is the next of the front runners in the market, at a best price of 6/1. There follows a host of familiar faces, including Sam Allardyce (10/1) and Steve Bruce (12/1).
The team are in a state of despair at the moment, having won just one of their nine matches in 2018. They finished bottom of their Nations League group and rounded off a string of lacklustre performances with a 0-0 draw against Denmark on Monday.
Oddschecker spokesperson George Elek: “There have been complaints about the quality of attacking football under O'Neil, so any calls from those quarters for McCarthy are a bit confusing. Kenny, who has received 38% of bets since the news broke, has his Dundalk team purring; they scored 85 goals in 36 games.”
