McCarthy's leadership qualities shone bright at Palace
Damien Delaney was signed by Crystal Palace to replace Paddy McCarthy but the Corkman feels his compatriot has the skillset to prosper as Ireland coach.
Interim boss John O’Shea and the former Ireland U21 captain has been working together, alongside Glenn Whelan and Brian Kerr, preparing Ireland for the friendlies against Belgium and Switzerland.
Delaney’s friendship with McCarthy stretched back to 2012 when he was recruited on a short-term deal after their resident centre-back was sidelined with a serious groin injury.
While McCarthy struggled to return – featuring just once in the league again in 2014 before retiring – Delaney became a Premier League regular and at 34 was part of their FAI Cup final team.
His fellow Irish defender watched on with envy but furrowed an alternative path in the game, rising through the ranks at Palace to be integral to the first-team staff.
Twice he took caretaker charge of the team, most recently in the 1-1 draw against Everton between the reigns of Roy Hodgson and incumbent Oliver Glasner.
“Paddy's misfortune was probably my good fortune, I suppose,” surmises Delaney, working on this week’s game as a Virgin Media pundit.
“What I would say is that throughout the five years I was at Palace - and Paddy was trying to get back from injury, trying very hard - he was still part of all the leadership groups.
“He was in the meetings with the manager if players had issues. That's quite a difficult role to fill if you're not playing.
“A lot of players, if they're not involved and playing every week, feel like they are not contributing, making it hard going into meetings and having an opinion.
“But Paddy was still very vociferous and a great head to have around.
“I think he realised after
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