Former Republic of Ireland manager Vera Pauw has claimed that members of her backroom staff turned on her during the final weeks of her tenure.
Pauw's time in charge of the women's National team came to an end this week when the FAI opted not to offer her a new contract after her current deal expired on Thursday. While no official reason has been given for Pauw's departure, the FAI did have a board meeting on Tuesday during which findings of an internal review into this Summer's World Cup campaign was presented to the 11-person strong board.
In a statement released on Thursday evening, Pauw slammed the review process and claimed that there was a pre-determined outcome before any review had even taken place. Pauw gave an interview to RTE's Tony O'Donoghue where the Dutchwoman made extraordinary claims that members of her staff had turned on her towards the end of her reign and that “behind my back all things were happening.”
Pauw again took aim at the internal review into the World Cup campaign which began “while still in camp after the Nigeria game.” The 60-year-old also criticised the fact that she was not the first person spoken to as part of the review, before taking aim at a staff member.
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“For example (They said) there was no communication, we did not discuss things. Every morning we had a staff meeting and every single detail of my task was discussed, from the setup of the training sessions to the game plan, the strategies.”
Rounding on the FAI, Pauw said that she 'nearly fell off her chair' when she was asked by the organisation whether she was Garda vetted. "Do we actually have a garda vetting of you Vera?' I fell off my chair, because I don't know why he said it. If you get a report about one of your employees in December 2022 the first thing you do is check if you have a garda vetting. That is your job, isn’t it?"
Additionally, Pauw also slammed the negotiation process she engaged in with the FAI, and claims that she missed out on two job offers while awaiting news on her Ireland future. "I've had two offers in the process that I stopped because I was waiting for the contract."
Pauw also addressed the Katie McCabe controversy which saw the then manager clash with the Ireland captain during the final World Cup game in July. The Dutchwoman defended her captain and said she enjoys an excellent relationship with the Irish star.
“Katie, after a week we have spoken for over an hour with each other. We are absolutely fine with each other. Also she admitted the tensions were so high, it was the first time, and I admitted that for me it was very difficult in that situation.
“So I hope…I’ve seen a lot on twitter regarding Katie. I hope that stops now because it is a young woman who made a mistake. I’ve made mistakes, everybody makes mistakes.
“And she should not be held accountable. In every team there are explosive players. How many teams do you not see male players shouting at a male coach?
“I even remember (Alex) Ferguson throwing a boot at somebody. Katie is absolutely fine. And I love Katie. And without spark, no fire. And without fire no performance. And Katie gives us so much.
“I am okay with players reacting to me. That doesn’t mean I have to go with that because I have another responsibility, I have the overview and the knowledge and experience.
“But if players react, for me that is not an issue, that is an issue for others.
“We talked about it afterwards and she acknowledged that you shouldn’t do that and that the world is watching. But no hard feelings to her at all.”"
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