Martin O'Neill could have become Nottingham Forest manager on numerous occasions in seasons gone by, the offer of building on his legend with the club made by more than one regime
But now in position he appreciates sentimentality is of little consequence.'The target is to get promotion,' he said
'I'm here for 18 months and if we can't get up then I'll hand it over for somebody else to try
' Share this article Share 29 shares It is a short-term contract for a man long in years but listening to him at the City Ground, the stadium where he helped bring miracles as a player for 10 years, was to hear the essence of enthusiasm
'I love football, that has never waned,' he said. 'I've reached a certain age where somebody could step in here, do really well and stay, and I'd have to retire and go off into the sunset and never have this opportunity
'I have a lot of very fond memories here. To go from promotion to the league title, to League Cups, to European Cups, for a provincial club, was extraordinary
Those were heady days.'If someone comes down here from Mars in 300 years, that will be there and that is great
'But don't live in the past. I'm trying to carve a niche here for the current players
I am really looking forward to it. I have had a number of chances before but I wasn't sure if it was the right time
Maybe there was some sort of destiny attached.' O'Neill would like to extend that sense of fate to Roy Keane, another favoured former player who is in discussions to join as assistant, reprising their partnership from Republic of Ireland
'I would dearly like him to join us,' O'Neill said. 'He has things to consider, both personally and professionally, and he will keep me informed
I think he wants to manage himself and he is very capable of doing that.'He was a great asset to me at Ireland
He was tough to handle, no doubt, but it's what makes him special. He drove Manchester United for 10 years, and he didn't win those things by just sitting around
'O'Neill reflected on his own robust relationship with Brian Clough, retelling the story, a myth it turns out, of the time he went into his manager's office to ask why he was in Forest's second team
'He said "because you are too good for the third team". O'Neill revealed: 'I made that up myself, it still comes back to haunt me
'Keane's tongue was too fierce for some Ireland players but O'Neill is attune to that
'There are changes that have taken place in this modern game that you address,' he said
'What I am talking about is players being able to accept some sort of criticism and fight back
That would have been my stance but I accept that it is not everyone's. And I think that we can all learn
'It has been six years since O'Neill, 66, managed a club and his finish at Ireland after success at Euro 2016 came with criticism of his methods
He accepts the landscape has changed since he was at Sunderland in 2013, but he made a compelling case for fitting well with Forest's continental model under owner Evangelos Marinakis
In the main O'Neill will leave transfers to others and he believes his motivational skills, used on the squad he has, can close a gap of four points to the play-offs
'I was asked to take ownership for the clubs when I went to Celtic, Leicester, Aston Villa
There are sporting directors now,' he said. 'I think it's more collective. You have to remember who runs the club
I have to work within the parameters I will be given. I have to talked to some of the players I've dealt with over the years and I think I've changed, adapted, and adjusted
'Asked what Clough might think of him sitting in the same dugout he once occupied, O'Neill's mind went back to his application for the Bradford job in 1987
'He said "I tell you what, I will give you the recommendation of all time, don't you worry about that – but you are not getting my job"
He did send a recommendation – and I did not get the job.'Forest fans are certainly pleased O'Neill has got this job finally, with Saturday's contest against Bristol City a sell-out
If O'Neill does inspire promotion, he expects the contract to be reassessed. 'Surely that's something that is to be looked at if that's the case,' he said
'I feel very young.' Share this article Share 29 shares
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