Heading into this month’s World Cup qualifiers against Portugal and Armenia, there is a general sense among the Ireland fanbase that Heimir Hallgrimsson’s long-term future with the team is in major doubt.

With the Icelander’s contract set to expire at the end of the current qualifying campaign, his future prospects were always going to be based around the six fixtures in late 2025. Unfortunately, Ireland’s prospects already look rather dim on the back of last month’s loss to Armenia.

Barring an unexpected turnaround, it seems as though the FAI could be on the hunt for a new Ireland manager over the coming months.

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Kevin Kilbane Has Three Candidates To Become Ireland Boss

The process to appoint Heimir Hallgrimsson as Stephen Kenny’s successor was a long and often farcical one, something supporters will be keen to see keen to avoid whenever the next managerial hunt takes place.

In any case, it seems all but certain that the current manager will remain in place until at least next month. Not everyone would agree that this would be the correct move.

Writing in the Irish Times, Kevin Kilbane suggested that anything less than three point from this month’s games should see Hallgrimsson immediately removed from his position. He also said that there were three ‘obvious’ candidates to become the next Ireland manager as things stand.

At least this time Marc Canham will be nowhere near the recruitment process of the next manager.

Plans should be in motion to make sure Ireland qualify for Euro 2028. The squad deserve a head coach who does not need three months to get up to speed with the players as Hallgrímsson required last year.

Damien Duff, Robbie Keane and Stephen Bradley are the obvious candidates. But that’s a conversation for next week or next month, unless the team pulls a result from the fire in Lisbon.

It remains to be seen how the rest of the qualifying campaign will play out, but it does seem likely that the FAI will be looking to appoint a new Ireland manager over the coming months.

Stephen Bradley and Damien Duff seem like the most likely candidates as things stand, although both men have had their run-ins with the Association in recent years. The same could be said of Robbie Keane, although he may look to continue on what has been a strong start to his club management career.

In any case, they will need to get the appointment right if they are to get the Ireland fanbase on side after what looks likely to be a failed experiment with the current manager.

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