Northern Ireland boss Michael O’Neill has played down links to the vacant Aberdeen managerial position.
However the 54-year-old admits he would not rule out a return to club football management in the future.
It is understood O’Neill has admirers within Pittodrie as the Dons hierarchy search for a new permanent manager.
However it would take a hefty investment to buy O’Neill out of his long-term contract with the Irish Football Association which runs until summer 2028.
O’Neill also explained why he was at Aberdeen’s 2-1 loss to St Mirren in Paisley on March 2.
The Aberdeen board aim to appoint a permanent boss during the upcoming international break.
Interim boss Neil Warnock stepped down from the management role following the 3-1 Scottish Cup quarter-final victory against Kilmarnock.
First team coach Peter Leven will be in interim charge for Saturday’s Premiership trip to Motherwell.
On Aberdeen, O’Neill said: “I signed a five and a half year contract, so I’m fully focused on what I’m doing here with Northern Ireland.
“That’s a story that has been in the Scottish media.
“I’m not in control of anything like that.
“My focus is always here.
“I was at a game two weeks ago between Aberdeen and St Mirren watching Caolan Boyd-Munce and Conor McMenamin, who both played very well.
“I’m not in control of what people speculate or what people write and it’s not something I give a lot of attention to.”
Would O’Neill return to club football?
Former midfielder O’Neill spent time on loan at Aberdeen from Coventry City in 1998.
O’Neill guided Northern Ireland to the Euro 2016 finals before leaving for Stoke City in 2020.
He returned to the Northern Ireland job in December 2022, signing a five-and-a-half-year contract.
O’Neill will take his Northern Ireland squad to Hampden on Tuesday, March 28 for a friendly match.
Asked if he wanted to manage in club football again, O’Neill said: “I would never close the door on that.
“But when I came back here (Northern Ireland) I came back knowing the job that was in hand.
“I felt I had a group of players who had possibly one last campaign in them.
“Unfortunately that wasn’t the case because a number of those senior players missed the whole campaign with injury or some retired.
“We’re now in a different phase, we’re having to go through a redevelopment, to build a team with very young players.
“If I do leave at some point and go to club football, the IFA did very well out of me going to Stoke and that’s a bridge we would cross if I ever came to it.
“But it’s not something I’m focused on at this time.”
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— EveningExpress Sport (@ee_sport) March 14, 2024
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