Jim McGuinness linked with Liverpool role

Donegal gaffer Jim McGuinness mulls over other opportunities at Celtic and Liverpool

All-Ireland winning Donegal boss Jim McGuinness has welcomed interest in his services from other sports and admitted he would be interested in working with a top flight soccer club.

McGuiness has been linked with posts at Glasgow Celtic and Liverpool after guiding Donegal to their first All-Ireland title in 20 years.

A noted sports psychologist, McGuinness has already struck up a relationship with Celtic boss Neil Lennon, who was a guest of the GAA at the recent All-Ireland final.

Speaking to Highland Radio in Donegal, McGuinness said, “I was invited over to Celtic a number of weeks ago for a Champions League match. It was a great experience to go over and see it.

“The day before I was invited over to the training grounds and got to look around. It’s a fantastic set-up, fantastic people there from the recruitment, talent identification, strength and conditioning, the coaches themselves and just the facilities.

“It was a great experience for me to go over there and to see that. Something I was obviously going to take with open arms when I was asked did I want to go over.”

McGuinness has yet to have any approach from Celtic, Liverpool or any other soccer team, but he is open to offers.

He added, “I’m a young man, I have three kids, a young family so it’s obviously something you would have to consider.

“My background is in sports science. My background is in psychology and that’s transferable to any sport.

“I’ve worked with all different sports. Trained Finn Harps for a year, worked with Derry City, trained Limavady for a year. Worked with golfers, Gaelic teams, hurling, male, female, young athletes.

 “I’ve worked across the spectrum so it wouldn’t be something that would scare me. If something came up, you’d look at it and discuss it with my wife. That would be the approach.”

McGuinness did admit it would take a serious offer to drag him away from his current job with the All-Ireland champions.

“It’s hard to know. Donegal is where I’m from, Donegal is my love and my passion,” he said.

“It would have to be something that I would have to look at very seriously if it was going to be anything. That isn’t the case at the moment.”

The Donegal boss also revealed that Ryder Cup vice captain Paul McGinley, whose father is from the county, made contact with him after the final.

“He texted me before the final that he was hoping for a good double and, thankfully, that’s the way it worked out,” McGuinness said.

“He texted me after the Ryder Cup to say it was like being 10 points down at halftime and winning the match by a point when they beat U.S.”

Asked about the All-Ireland final win over Mayo, McGuinness confirmed the two early goals were part of his master plan.

He said, “We were hoping to get a good start. We were hoping that there would be goals within the start, we talked about one before the game and possibly two if we done everything right.

“I think the things that created the goals in the first place, we stopped doing that. However, I was cross at halftime, for the first time probably that I was involved and I was cross because we put ourselves in a very, very strong position.

“And I really wanted the game to be perfect for the boys and I felt we got ourselves into a position where we could have created that but we started doing things then within the game that we normally wouldn’t do.”

http://www.irishcentral.com/sport/Donegal-gaffer-Jim-McGuinness-mulls-over-other-opportunities-at-Celtic-and-Liverpool--173561311.html?page=2

For those of you who don't know who he is,He recently won the All-Ireland Gaelic football championship with his home county Donegal who hadn't won it in 20 years.He is known to be a highly organized manager who uses modern and unorthodox training techniques.I would think the link would come because Rodgers and McGuinness are both Northern Irish.   

Is there an example of his unorthodox training techniques?

More to the point does he know anything about football?

More to the point does he know anything about football?

Probably as much as John Henry does.

Is there an example of his unorthodox training techniques?

I have three envelopes, written in each are one of the unorthodox training techniques......

I have three envelopes, written in each are one of the unorthodox training techniques......

Fergie already used the envelope one so its not new.

Would have much preferred no envelopes and Rodgers telling all that nobody is goin to let the team down because he believes in them all.

Fergie already used the envelope one so its not new.

Would have much preferred no envelopes and Rodgers telling all that nobody is goin to let the team down because he believes in them all.

Surprised he did not use 3 bags instead, more to his character

Fergie already used the envelope one so its not new.

Would have much preferred no envelopes and Rodgers telling all that nobody is goin to let the team down because he believes in them all.

A bit hard to believe in Downing.
To me it's like praying to god to solve something, you keep hoping he'll put in an appearance but he never does, so you have to read old stories about how great he is.

Sorry if that offends anyone, but I'm not religious.

Did a great job at Donegal.
Deserves a chance at professional level.
Maybe more so at Celtic.

Typical to make a joke of someone we dont know or dont understand,

He said his back ground his sport science. He wont be telling Stevie how to take a corner for christ sake.

His team, Donegal where going nowhere. He came in last year and took them to the semi finals where they lost to the eventual winners. This year he took them all the way. In that time his county won 2 provincial titles back to back. First time that county done back to backs and this years All Ireland win was only the countys second, first won was in 92.

Point being he came in got inside a squad of players heads told them what was expected and if they werent up for it out ye go. He then brought them to a savage fitness levels.He done this in little time. He knows how to get the best from players. As a member of a background team he could do a job no question.

Typical to make a joke of someone we dont know or dont understand,

He said his back ground his sport science. He wont be telling Stevie how to take a corner for christ sake.

His team, Donegal where going nowhere. He came in last year and took them to the semi finals where they lost to the eventual winners. This year he took them all the way. In that time his county won 2 provincial titles back to back. First time that county done back to backs and this years All Ireland win was only the countys second, first won was in 92.

Point being he came in got inside a squad of players heads told them what was expected and if they werent up for it out ye go. He then brought them to a savage fitness levels.He done this in little time. He knows how to get the best from players. As a member of a background team he could do a job no question.

That's how I read it as well.

I'm not really up on my GAA these days, but wasn't it something of a surprise that Donegal won the All Ireland?
I can't think of tougher sports to be a sports psychologist either, so yes I think he'd do well as part of BR's team, and could very well bring something different to the team.

Wow..tough crowd around here.

Guess I'll take my attempt at bad humor to another thread, maybe people there will appreciate it.

A bit hard to believe in Downing.
To me it's like praying to god to solve something, you keep hoping he'll put in an appearance but he never does, so you have to read old stories about how great he is.

Sorry if that offends anyone, but I'm not religious.

A beautiful observation though, couldn't have put it better myself!

A bit hard to believe in Downing.
To me it's like praying to god to solve something, you keep hoping he'll put in an appearance but he never does, so you have to read old stories about how great he is.

Sorry if that offends anyone, but I'm not religious.

Hehe, top notch!

Here's a quick video of the win in the final a few weeks ago Viper Higgins (Hardy Bucks) - All Ireland Commentary Highlights

Forget McGuinness, can't we just get Daniel Day-Lewis in Bill The Butcher mode instead!!

Wasn't he originally linked like the week after the final? Joe.ie had it anyways.

I always thought his background was sports psychology, but must be sport science. Psychology certainly would be a help with certain players, most notably Downing. The goalkeepers would also benefit I'm sure.

But yeah, remember Clive Woodward at Southampton...

He had them all thinking they were super heroes , they were unstoppable.

He had them all thinking they were super heroes , they were unstoppable.

Downing could do with a word from McGuinness.

Sounds very promising.

Downing could do with a word from McGuinness.

Sounds very promising.

Downing like ironman and Hendo like Thor.

He had them all thinking they were super heroes , they were unstoppable.

It all went went until one of them thought he was spiderman, what a mess !

Obviously sh*te.