Stephen Kenny accepts his time as Ireland manager may be up

Stephen Kenny admitted that "there may not be the appetite" among the FAI board to reappoint him as Republic of Ireland manager after his contract expired following the 1-1 friendly draw with New Zealand.

The Dubliner's three years in charge are expected to come to an end following an underwhelming Euro 2024 campaign in which Ireland finished fourth in Group B, seven points adrift of third-placed Greece.

The FAI are due to announce their decision on whether to offer him a new deal in the coming weeks and, speaking to RTÉ Sport after the game, Kenny said about being left waiting: "That’s the way it is, I have no complaints. I’ve spoken to the players about that.

"It may well be my last match. That has been well-documented. If it is, so be it, because I've had the privilege of managing my country.

"Sport is ruthless. People get impatient and I understand that because we all want to qualify for tournaments. We'll have to see."

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Kenny paid tribute to his young squad, staff and the fans.

"It has been a huge privilege to see this group grow and I think they are capable of having a strong Nations League in Group B, where you’re not in with the elite teams like France and Holland. I think it’s a strong squad going forward.

"Maybe 18 months ago I had eight players from League One, now everyone is Championship or higher. We've got seven in the Premier League and one in Serie A. 90% of the players, their career are on an upward trajectory.

"Because we had such a rebuild we had our