Blow for Kenny as Eustace takes over at Birmingham

Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny is set for another backroom reshuffle as coach John Eustace has been appointed to the top job at Championship club Birmingham City.

Just four months in his role with the FAI, Eustace is set to depart in what felt like an inevitable move due to interest in his services in England as a number one.

He had been operating in the position of assistant manager at Queens Park Rangers for the last four years before an exit in early summer.

The Blues sacked Lee Bowyer yesterday and moved quickly to appoint Eustace as his replacement.

Eustace said: "I am very proud to be here. Obviously, I am a Birmingham lad and I know the potential of the club and how important it is to the fans.

"We have underachieved in the past few seasons and a club of this size, with the support that this club has, we need to be aiming higher.

"I can't wait to get going, meet the staff and get my ideas across to the players out on the pitches as soon as we can.

"The big picture is to get us as competitive as we can, to build a team that the fans are proud of, to play exciting football and win as many games as we can.

"The first thing we have to do is get this squad competitive and ready for that first game of the season against Luton."

Kenny's philosophy has been to appoint the most progressive and highly-rated young coaches in Britain and Ireland, but that has proven a risky tactic as interest has quickly materialised elsewhere.

Damien Duff left early in his tenure for personal reasons, with his replacement Anthony Barry snapped up by Belgium.

Now Eustace has moved on, the Ireland boss will be on the look out for his fourth coach since taking the job.

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