Gus Poyet says he'd like to manage the Ireland team
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Gus Poyet says he'd like to manage the Ireland team

Greece manager Gus Poyet has sensationally claimed that he would be interested in becoming the manager of the Republic of Ireland football team one day.

Poyet's Greek side beat Stephen Kenny's Ireland for the second time in this qualifying campaign last Friday. The loss for Ireland now means that they won't be able to make it to Germany through automatic qualification routes.

Kenny's tenure in charge of the Ireland team also looks set to end when the qualification process concludes in November. A number of candidates have already been linked to the post, while Kenny is still in the job. These candidates include the likes of England U21 boss Lee Carsley, Steve Bruce, Damien Duff, Roy Keane, and a host of other names too.

After Greece's 2-0 win over Ireland in Dublin, Poyet became the latest candidate to be linked with the soon-to-be vacant role. Poyet offered his praise for the Irish support in Dublin and said he would love to be in charge of the Irish national team.

"It is a big plus for us to have this situation now and be able to beat the Republic of Ireland twice because, I tell you, the support in here. I would like to be in charge of the team here,” said Poyet,

“I would love that. I would absolutely love that. I think it is a terrific place to come and play football. I was even surprised coming from the hotel, watching the people. I pay attention a lot. How many people have got the tracksuit? The black one. How many people have the green. 'Listen, in Uruguay we are patriots, but I don’t think many people buy the national team tracksuit. I don’t remember, maybe I am wrong. The shirt? Yes. But I don’t think many people buy the tracksuit. They are there with the tracksuit, it is proper. It is proper.”

Poyet's contract with Greece expires in December, and the opportunity would present itself sooner rather than later. When asked if he would be interested after that, the Uruguayan added, "If I qualify." 

Ireland plays Gibraltar tonight at 7.45pm.

Match DetailsFixture: Gibraltar v Republic of IrelandCompetition: UEFA EURO 2024 QualifyingDate: Monday, October 16Kick-off: 7.45pmVenue: Estádio Algarve-Faro-Loulé (Portugal)TV: RTEMatch OfficialsReferee: Christian-Petru Ciochirca (AUT)Assistant Referee 1: Maximilian Weiss (AUT)Assistant Referee 2: Michael Obritzberger (AUT)Fourth Official: Harald Lechner (AUT)Video Assistant Referee: Alan Kijas (AUT)Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Manuel Schuettengruber (AUT)