FAI 'getting closer' to new manager but may not be in place for March friendlies

FAI director of football Marc Canham said the association is "getting closer" to appointing a new senior men's manager, but he would not guarantee one will be in place before next month's friendlies against Belgium and Switzerland.

The process of replacing Stephen Kenny - who departed in November - continues to drag on.

England Under-21 head coach Lee Carsley remains the No 1 target, but there has yet to be a major breakthrough in terms of an agreement between both parties.

Last week Carsley's former international team-mate Shay Given said: "It's my understanding that it is not going to be Lee Carsley. Maybe not now, but maybe in the future Lee might be interested."

Neil Lennon and Chris Coleman are both understood to be out of the running, as is Chris Hughton, recently sacked by Ghana after a disappointing AFCON.

Speaking at the unveiling of his comprehensive Football Pathways Plan on Tuesday, Canham said: "The process is ongoing. We hope to complete that process as soon as possible. We're getting closer, that's all I would say on that.

"It's similar to what we did with the women's head coach. We are following a very similar process, similar timeline. I'm not going to comment on any individuals or any circumstances, but we continue to have positive conversations with candidates about the role. Like I said we hope to conclude that as soon as possible.

"I'm not going to talk about any candidates, any specifics."

When asked if there was a possibility there might not be a manager in place by the time Ireland are next in action in late March, Canham replied: "The process is ongoing. We hope to conclude that as soon as possible. It's a confidential process. We ran a very tight process with respect to all the people that we spoke to