Michael O’Neill expressed that he was “a little bit disappointed” upon discovering that several Championship clubs had reached out to the English Football League to voice concerns regarding his dual role as the manager of Northern Ireland and Blackburn.
The clubs brought up the issue prior to Northern Ireland’s friendly match against Wales on Tuesday evening, highlighting a potential conflict of interest since O’Neill has the authority to select players for international duty while they are concurrently engaged in the relegation battle alongside Blackburn.
According to BBC Radio Oxford, the Us were among the clubs that made inquiries.
Oxford has four players included in O’Neill’s squad, with Ciaron Brown and Jamie Donley — the latter netting Northern Ireland’s goal in a 1-1 draw — starting in Cardiff, while Brodie Spencer was substituted in and Jamie McDonnell remained on the bench.
Portsmouth’s Terry Devlin and West Brom’s Isaac Price also started the match, but neither played the full 90 minutes, while Blackburn’s own young defender Tom Atcheson made his Northern Ireland debut in the second half.
Blackburn, currently in 19th place in the Championship, sits four points above Oxford, which is in 23rd place. West Brom is level on points with Blackburn, while Portsmouth trails by three points. The next set of Championship matches is scheduled for Friday.
During his post-match press conference, O’Neill stated: “If I’m honest, I’m a little bit disappointed. These clubs request references on players. They seek character assessments and performance levels from us and our staff when they wish to sign these players.
“They were international players at the time of their signing. Now, all of a sudden, it becomes somewhat of an issue that they are international players.
“If you examine the players involved, Isaac played 45 minutes tonight, Ciaron played 60, Jamie played 60, and young Jamie McDonnell did not play at all. Terry played a bit more but did not finish both matches.
“I will always strive to protect the players. I do not want the players coming here and it impacting their club situations.
“Thus, I was a little bit disappointed by that because I did not receive a phone call from any of the managers. I did not get a call from anyone at their respective clubs.
“So they felt that way, and whatever course of action they chose to express their concerns, it is disappointing considering that I have managed over 100 international matches and have always prioritized the players.”
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The EFL has stated that international selection falls under FIFA’s purview and is not within their authority.
The league anticipates that all selection decisions will be made with integrity and in a manner that does not tarnish the reputation of the game.
O’Neill has encountered numerous inquiries following his decision to accept the Blackburn position six weeks ago, and on Monday he mentioned that he was “fed up” with being questioned about his future amid speculation regarding a potential return to club football on a full-time basis.
