Martin O'Neill rules himself out of Northern Ireland manager's job

Martin O'Neill has ruled himself out of contention for the Northern Ireland manager's job

Martin O'Neill has ruled himself out of contention for the Northern Ireland football manager's job.

The former Aston Villa and Celtic boss had been mentioned as a possible candidate after Nigel Worthington announced he was stepping down from the role.

O'Neill told BBC Radio Ulster he wanted to return to club management in the near future.

Jim Magilton, Michael O'Neill and Iain Dowie have been linked with the job.

Martin O'Neill has not been involved in football management since resigning as Aston Villa manager in August 2010.

He is a former captain of Northern Ireland and was capped 64 times for his country.

O'Neill said he had not been approached by the Irish Football Association.

He added that he would not dismiss the possibility of accepting the Northern Ireland manager's job at a later stage in his career.