Ray Houghton will assist in the the search for the new Republic of Ireland manager.
Former Ireland international joins three-man committee
Ray Houghton has been named as the third member of the three-man committee tasked with selecting Steve Staunton's successor as manager of the Republic of Ireland.
The former Republic international, who won 73 caps, joins Ireland Under 21 boss Don Givens and former Arsenal coach Don Howe.
The trio will recommend the next Ireland boss and Football Association of Ireland chief executive John Delaney hopes to have his man in place before the friendly with Brazil at Croke Park on 6th February.
Delaney said: "I'm pleased about it. I'm pleased with Don Givens and Don Howe and I'm pleased that Ray has joined that team.
Very pleased
"I'm very pleased about it and the process has now moved on. The guys will go about interviewing whoever is in their plans and their sights and I'm sure they will get about that over the coming weeks.
"I am pretty certain in my own mind that they will come back with one name. It's a matter of the chairperson of the committee of three explaining the decision behind the person they are going to recommend and I couldn't see a circumstance where that couldn't be ratified.
"It's preferable for me as chief executive that we would have a manager in place for the Brazil game, that's preferable, but I think everybody understands this time round we have got to get the right appointment and I think everyone understands that."
Delaney also responded to recent speculation, insisting Terry Venables has not been consulted over the vacant manager's job.
Venables link
"I think there has been a lot of speculation and there also has been a lot of inaccuracies, it has to be accepted, over the last period," he added.
"We've tried to go about it quietly and privately. We've met a number of people and I'm pleased that the team is now the one that set out to put in place the night that Stephen Staunton was no longer manager of Ireland.
"We set out a process. The process is in place and we never deviated from it. There was a lot of inaccuracies and I can speak about it now because I've handed over the process if you like.
"There was never an intention to meet anyone down in South Africa and there was never any intention to meet anyone in relation to the vacant manager's job. Terry Venables was never spoken to by the FAI or by myself."
