SOCCER:SHAMROCK ROVERS skipper Dan Murray says he is surprised by the news that Thursday's Europa League game against Tottenham Hotspur will almost certainly be Michael O'Neill's last as manager of the club.

O’Neill told the players yesterday that he would be departing when his contract with the club runs out at the end of the month. The 42-year-old is in contention to succeed Nigel Worthington as Northern Ireland boss but he has yet to be interviewed for the position and looks set to leave his current position without being sure of his next move.

“He said that contract negotiations had broken down,” said Murray last night. “He said he was telling us so he could focus on Thursday’s game and make sure we do ourselves justice. I was pretty surprised myself because we’ve had a pretty good year but it’s one of those things.

“It will be sad to see him go. He brought me to the club from Cork and made me captain. We’ve done well in the league here and had some enjoyable nights in Europe.”

Rovers offered former Northern Ireland international O’Neill a new contract earlier in the year and the club’s officials have consistently said that they were hopeful that he would sign it. However, the deal is believed to have fallen some way short of what O’Neill was looking for in order to commit his long-term future to the Tallaght club while it is understood that there are also differences over the future development of the team.

O’Neill, who left Scottish outfit Brechin City to take over at Rovers three years ago, now looks likely to return to Britain in the event that he fails to land the Northern Ireland job. Most of the contenders for that position are due to be interviewed this week but his meeting with IFA officials will take place separately due to the Tottenham game.

O’Neill, who recently lost out to Pat Fenlon for the Hibernian job, appears to be confident that, even if he does miss out on the chance to move into international management at this point, there will be opportunities over the coming months as chairmen at struggling clubs get nervous.

There will be no shortage of domestic managers, meanwhile, who will see the position he vacates as a highly attractive one.