Carl Robinson has revealed how close he came to landing the top job as Wales manager.
The former Welsh international featured in over 50 games for the Red Dragons until his retirement from the national team in 2009. Having moved into management in 2012, the Welshman was touted to potentially take over the job after Chris Coleman's run ended after 5 years at the helm.
Speaking exclusively to Tribalfootball.com, Robinson acknowledged his desire to manage Wales but affirmed his status to his job at Vancouver Whitecaps at the time. While he may have been a candidate for the job, the timing for Robinson wasn't at an optimal place for him and his development as a manager.
Despite being employed at the time of the Wales vacancy, Robinson reaffirms his pride of his Welsh heritage and says there will always be a desire to manage the national team of his homeland.
"It simply has to be the right timing for me, I want to know that I will succeed in my methods that I've crafted at club level," he said. "There's not a right or wrong reason, I just happened to be at Vancouver when the Welsh job was available and I was happy.
"As a player, you dream to play professionally, and from there you dream to play internationally. Same goes for management, right now I'm managing at club level but I would love to manage Wales, I've made that very clear."
These days he manages A-League club Newcastle Jets, preparing for the league's restart in July while pining for progress and success next season. Robinson says there are some stark differences between being club and international management, but as a manager there are no shortage of options for employment.
"As an international manager, you'll have a 10 to 12 day window of games with about 3 months preparation, you'd spend a lot of time on the road and a lot of time waiting for the chance to work with your players. It's a challenge and I really like that idea.
"At the moment I want to be a day to day manager and do my work on the grass, spend a whole year working closely with my club. I really enjoy what I do with my players and staff.
"Naturally as a Welshman it would be a dream to manage Wales one day, but I'm open to a number of national teams should the timing be right."
Robinson's Newcastle Jets will face an action packed return to the A-League season as they aim for a finals berth this season.
