SOCCER/ Euro 2008: Republic of Ireland manager Steve Staunton will discover what punishment he faces for being sent from the dugout by referee Luis Medina Cantalejo in last Saturday's European Championship qualifying game when Uefa's Control and Disciplinary Body meet today. Mary Hannigan reports
Staunton's case will be one of several heard by the body, with the expectation being that he will be handed at least a one-match touchline ban, which would consign him to the stands for the qualifying game against Cyprus on October 7th.
If, however, Uefa take a sterner view of his behaviour, based on the contents of Cantalejo's match report, he could also be banned from the dugout for the visit of the Czech Republic to Lansdowne Road four days later.
In what was his first competitive match in charge, Staunton was dismissed by Cantalejo, having already received a warning earlier in the game, for kicking a water bottle in frustration when the official turned down appeals for a penalty and free-kick when Kevin Doyle and Robbie Keane fell under German challenges.
Staunton insisted after the game that the prospect of a ban did not concern him, but appeared unaware that such a ban precludes a suspended manager from communicating with any members of his staff from the moment the team enters the stadium.
"It's out of my control as to what happens now, but I'm not afraid of anything," he said.
"I will still be at the games. Even if I'm not in the dugout and Bobby (Robson) is not back, then I'm not worried because I have a great backroom staff. I picked them and I put full trust in them, and I will be able to relay my thoughts without getting angry in the stands."
The Uefa Control and Disciplinary Body is usually made up of 11 members but just 10 men will hear Staunton's case as their colleague, Football Association of Ireland chief executive John Delaney, is not involved with Staunton's case owing to conflict of interests.
The punishment meted out to Staunton, who has the option of defending himself by way of a letter to the body, might not be made public until early next week, with Uefa first obliged to inform the manager himself of the sanction.
"A manager's dismissal is treated the same way as that of a player," said a Uefa spokesperson of the case.
"In this instance, a one-match suspension would be the likely punishment imposed. However, that can be increased depending on the incident, and the relevant comments in the referee's report."
In the expected absence of Robson, who is recovering from a recent operation, Kevin MacDonald, Staunton's assistant, would be the man in charge on the bench for the duration of the manager's suspension.
Staunton, meanwhile, was in Bratislava to watch Slovakia lose 3-0 to the Czech Republic in their Group D match on Wednesday night, a result that puts the Czechs level on six points with Germany after their opening two games of qualification.
The Germans ran riot against San Marino, Lukas Podolski scoring four in a 13-0 win, the biggest victory in European Championship history and just three goals short of Germany's greatest every victory margin, a 16-0 win over Russia at the 1912 Olympics.
Somewhat worryingly for San Marino, who have to still to play Germany away, Joachim Loew, the German coach, said after the game: "We can still improve on certain things."
Commenting on the state of the group after two games, Loew added: "The Czechs are seemingly our hardest opponents, but Ireland will cause a lot of problems and I wouldn't write off Slovakia, despite the result."
