Republic of Ireland under-21 manager Don Givens has stepped down after 10 years in charge and will take up a role as the FAI's chief scout in the UK. The former international striker has been under pressure of late after four draws and three defeats left his side languishing at the bottom of their Uefa Championships qualifying group.
The poor run was exacerbated by recent back-to-back defeats to minnows Armenia, while Georgia, Estonia, Turkey and leaders Switzerland are also looking down on Ireland in Group 2.
The FAI will announce his replacement before the next match against Estonia on August 10th.
FAI high performance director Wim Koevermans thanked Givens for his work but added the time was right for a change, while senior manager Giovanni Trapattoni said he "played an important part in developing and identifying new talent for the senior squad."
He added: “I look forward to continuing that relationship in his new capacity as chief scout in the UK.”
FAI chief executive John Delaney praised Givens as a “great servant of the game" said he was "happy that he will continue to contribute to Irish football in his role overseeing our UK scouting network.
"He has a great knowledge of the game and will be ideally placed to assist our international teams in monitoring the progress of emerging Irish talent playing in the UK.”
In his 10 years at the helm, Givens brought through senior international players such as Glenn Whelan, Darron Gibson, Leon Best, James McCarthy, Eddie Nolan, Anthony Stokes and Darren O’Dea.
He was twice appointed caretaker manager of the senior side, once in 2002 and again in
2007/2008 before the arrival of Trapattoni.