John Toshack is set to resign as Wales manager and is considering announcing his departure within the next 48 hours. The 61-year-old could, though, continue temporarily in the role to give the Football Association of Wales time to identify and appoint a replacement.
That raises the prospect of Toshack remaining in charge for next month's 2012 European Championship qualifiers against Bulgaria and Switzerland. Wales, who do not play this week, are then without a competitive game until March.
Toshack was despondent after Friday's defeat in Montenegro, in their opening Group G fixture, and he feels that he has taken the side as far as he can. Toshack has no desire to oversee another qualification campaign where Wales are effectively going through the motions with little chance of progressing and is preparing to bring his six-year reign in his second spell as manager to an end.
FAW officials last night said Toshack had not yet quit, although they are aware of just how low the manager felt in the wake of the chastening 1-0 defeat by Montenegro. It was Wales's sixth defeat in their last nine matches and Toshack cut a dejected figure after a poor display that drew criticism from the 500 travelling supporters.
There had been suggestions that Toshack might wait to see how Wales performed in the Bulgaria and Switzerland matches before reaching a decision over his future but it now appears he will clarify his position early this week.
Toshack, whose contract expires in 2012, had felt upbeat about Wales's prospects when Scotland were defeated 3-0 in November but he has taken few positives from performances since. He had hoped what is a reasonable draw for the European Championship would give Wales a genuine chance of finishing second in their group, behind England, but the 1-0 defeat in Podgorica on Friday means they already face an uphill task, with Toshack describing the Bulgaria game in Cardiff next month as "must-win".
The list of potential candidates to succeed Toshack is likely to include Chris Coleman, who is out of work, Dean Saunders, the Wrexham manager who is also Toshack's assistant, and Brian Flynn, who has done an impressive job in his role as the Wales Under-21 coach. Gary Speed would have been near the top of the list but his recent appointment as Sheffield United manager has taken him out of the reckoning.
Toshack is expected to push Ryan Giggs's name forward as his replacement, although it seems unlikely that the 36-year-old will take the position when he remains a key part of Sir Alex Ferguson's plans at Manchester United. Giggs would, however, be the most popular choice among the public and give Welsh football a much needed boost at a time when supporters have become increasingly disillusioned with the national team's results and their failure to mount a serious challenge to reach a major finals for the first time since the 1958 World Cup.
The job of managing Wales is certainly a challenging one, as Toshack discovered from the moment he replaced Mark Hughes. Although Wales have a sprinkling of talented individuals, there is a small pool of players to pick from and injuries and premature international retirements have made things more difficult still. The Wales manager had hoped a crop of promising youngsters would flourish but, while Chris Gunter and Gareth Bale have caught the eye, Aaron Ramsey and Jack Collison have picked up serious injuries and many others have stood still or regressed.
Toshack knows, however, he must take responsibility for the results, which have generally been disappointing and prompted calls from supporters as well as former players for a change of manager.
That raises the prospect of Toshack remaining in charge for next month's 2012 European Championship qualifiers against Bulgaria and Switzerland. Wales, who do not play this week, are then without a competitive game until March.
Toshack was despondent after Friday's defeat in Montenegro, in their opening Group G fixture, and he feels that he has taken the side as far as he can. Toshack has no desire to oversee another qualification campaign where Wales are effectively going through the motions with little chance of progressing and is preparing to bring his six-year reign in his second spell as manager to an end.
FAW officials last night said Toshack had not yet quit, although they are aware of just how low the manager felt in the wake of the chastening 1-0 defeat by Montenegro. It was Wales's sixth defeat in their last nine matches and Toshack cut a dejected figure after a poor display that drew criticism from the 500 travelling supporters.
There had been suggestions that Toshack might wait to see how Wales performed in the Bulgaria and Switzerland matches before reaching a decision over his future but it now appears he will clarify his position early this week.
Toshack, whose contract expires in 2012, had felt upbeat about Wales's prospects when Scotland were defeated 3-0 in November but he has taken few positives from performances since. He had hoped what is a reasonable draw for the European Championship would give Wales a genuine chance of finishing second in their group, behind England, but the 1-0 defeat in Podgorica on Friday means they already face an uphill task, with Toshack describing the Bulgaria game in Cardiff next month as "must-win".
The list of potential candidates to succeed Toshack is likely to include Chris Coleman, who is out of work, Dean Saunders, the Wrexham manager who is also Toshack's assistant, and Brian Flynn, who has done an impressive job in his role as the Wales Under-21 coach. Gary Speed would have been near the top of the list but his recent appointment as Sheffield United manager has taken him out of the reckoning.
Toshack is expected to push Ryan Giggs's name forward as his replacement, although it seems unlikely that the 36-year-old will take the position when he remains a key part of Sir Alex Ferguson's plans at Manchester United. Giggs would, however, be the most popular choice among the public and give Welsh football a much needed boost at a time when supporters have become increasingly disillusioned with the national team's results and their failure to mount a serious challenge to reach a major finals for the first time since the 1958 World Cup.
The job of managing Wales is certainly a challenging one, as Toshack discovered from the moment he replaced Mark Hughes. Although Wales have a sprinkling of talented individuals, there is a small pool of players to pick from and injuries and premature international retirements have made things more difficult still. The Wales manager had hoped a crop of promising youngsters would flourish but, while Chris Gunter and Gareth Bale have caught the eye, Aaron Ramsey and Jack Collison have picked up serious injuries and many others have stood still or regressed.
Toshack knows, however, he must take responsibility for the results, which have generally been disappointing and prompted calls from supporters as well as former players for a change of manager.
Stuart James, The Guardian
http://www.skysports.com/video/clips/0,23791,12602_6356677,00.html
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