Dundee United candidate Austin MacPhee agrees Northern Ireland job

Interviewee for Tannadice role says yes to serve on Baraclough’s staff

Austin MacPhee, third left, stands alongside Michael O’Neill with whom he worked in the Northern Ireland set-up. Picture: James Marsh/BPI/Shutterstock

Ian Baraclough has confirmed that Dundee United managerial candidate Austin MacPhee has agreed to be a member of his Northern Ireland coaching staff.

Baraclough was unveiled as new Northern Ireland manager yesterday after his appointment as Michael O’Neill’s successor last weekend.

He has already retained the services of Jimmy Nicholl, who was brought in to assist O’Neill, and has now struck an agreement with former Hearts assistant manager MacPhee as he seeks to continue a winning blend.

MacPhee has been interviewed for the vacant Dundee United manager’s post but Steve McClaren or Malky Mackay are favourites to be named Robbie Neilson’s successor. If MacPhee does land the job at Tannadice then the decision to remain with Northern Ireland may well need to be revisited. Baraclough revealed the 40-year-old Scot’s role will alter slightly under him.

“I’ve spoken to him about his role and how I see that,” said Baraclough, pictured, who has stepped up from the Under- 21s to lead the senior side. “It will be slightly different but again he wants to be part of the group and taking that forward. There are a couple [of new faces] that I’m looking at, but there’s no big upheavals.”

MacPhee was brought into the Northern Ireland set-up by O’Neill in 2014 after they met each other while scouting players at an Aberdeen game.

MacPhee was then on the coaching staff at St Mirren. He was an important member of O’Neill’s backroom team when Northern Ireland made it to the European Championships in France four years ago for the first time.

They then lost out narrowly to Switzerland in a play-off for the World Cup in Russia.

Northern Ireland are in another play-off to reach Euro 2020. Like Scotland, they have a play-off semi-final coming up in October, when they meet Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Baraclough has a difficult act to follow in O’Neill, who was named Stoke boss in November and stood down from the national team in April as the coronavirus pandemic forced the postponement of the original Euro 2020 qualifying play-offs.

Having been involved behind the scenes in the senior set-up and seen almost a dozen players he coached with the Under-21s graduate to earn senior caps, Baraclough was the continuity candidate of the five men interviewed by the Irish Football Association last week.

However, the 49-year-old former Scunthorpe and Motherwell manager has his own ideas ahead of his first games in charge in September, and the all-important Euro qualifier away to Bosnia-Herzegovina in early October.

“I’m a big believer that you have to push boundaries and you have to try new things,” he told the PA news agency. “It won’t be radical, it won’t be a complete change so players do understand what we’re trying to get across because we haven’t got that much time to go.

“We can’t overhaul something – that’s not what I want. The foundations have been laid for me to come in and maybe tweak one or two things as we go forward.

“I’m not going to come in and try to be a clone of Michael. That would be wrong of me. I’ve got my own personality.”

Baraclough compiled an impressive record in his three years with the Under-21s, enjoying wins over Spain and Iceland and coming close to reaching last year’s European Championships.

One of his first tasks will be to phone Sheffield United midfielder Oliver Norwood, who announced his retirement from international football last year at the age of only 28 and after making 57 appearances. Norwood explained that the surprise decision was because he wanted to concentrate on club football but Baraclough is hopeful he can be persuaded to return. “It would be wrong of me not to make that phone call and to speak to Ollie,” said Baraclough.”I know his mind was made up, and I know that he’d made that decision and was sticking to it, but it would be wrong of me not to make that call.”

Baraclough has signed an 18-month deal which, while short in time, will include a packed schedule in the revamped calendar, taking in Nations League games, World Cup qualifiers and, Northern Ireland hope, a trip to the Euros next summer.

“There are a hell of a lot of games to look forward to, not only the Nations League and the World Cup campaign,” he said. “It’s going to be tough without doubt but it’s something to embrace and look forward to.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

The dramatic events of 2020 are having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive. We are now more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription to support our journalism.

Subscribe to scotsman.com and enjoy unlimited access to Scottish news and information online and on our app. Visit https://www.scotsman.com/subscriptions now to sign up.

By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Joy Yates

Editorial Director