Stephen Kenny not distracted by speculation over his future and not looking for further clarification

Stephen Kenny stated that he does not need any further clarification regarding his future ahead of tomorrow's Euro 2024 qualifier against Gibraltar in Faro.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference at the Estadio Algarve, the Ireland manager said that speculation regarding his future is not a distracting factor as he has been assured that he will remain in charge of the team for the duration of the campaign.

Two games remain in the group phase as Ireland take on the bottom-placed side before they travel to Amsterdam in November to finish their campaign against the Netherlands.

"No, I have to be realistic, it was perfectly clarified," said Kenny, when asked was the ongoing speculation over his future a distraction to match preparations.

"[FAI chief executive] Jonathan Hill perfectly clarified it when he said that Stephen would be the manager until the games in November, and they'll have a review and assess that. At the moment that's out of my control.

"In this camp it was important to try and win against Greece, we haven't managed to do that, I understand that, that it's not a good result for us.

"But from my point of view, I am contracted to the end of the campaign, so I just want to finish the campaign strong. If there is a play-off we can assess that, but finish the campaign strong and take it from there. We are motivated to do that, finish the campaign strong."

Despite the disappointing loss to Greece on Friday night, the manager has no concerns regarding his players’ attitude for such a low-profile game, and does not feel he will need to offer any extra motivation ahead of the game.

"Playing for Ireland, it’s all the players’ ambition to play for Ireland," said the manager. "Anyone who doesn’t play the game is