Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy has admmitted that that he will quit his job in 2004 because he misses the day-to-day involvement of managing a club side.
McCarthy, who has been under pressure in his position since his pre-World Cup bust-up with Roy Keane, was linked with the recent vacancy at Sunderland, which went to Howard Wilkinson. Matters were not helped by Ireland’s opening EURO 2004 qualifier – a 4-2 defeat to Russia.
The former Millwall boss has come in for an increasing amount of criticism in recent months but he is adamant that he will not resign.
‘I thought with the team we’ve got and the way we’ve played, why should I walk away?
‘I think I might have been walking away to suit other people, not to suit me. I love doing this job and to qualify for Portugal in 2004 was my ambition.
‘I’d like to qualify for the European Championship and then I will have done eight years in the job – I think that’s more than enough.
‘I will go away from it, whatever happens. Even if we qualify I will go and look for a job.’
