2026 World Cup: Belfast’s Mick McDermott’s journey from Belfast to becoming Ghana’s assistant coach
McDermott’s relationship with Queiroz goes back to 2011 and has spanned three different national teams with two spells at Iran as well as one at Qatar and now Ghana, but it was a mutual connection that got the ball rolling for the two to meet.
“Carlos was considering the Iran job in 2011 and my former head coach in the USL in America was Carlos’ long-term goalkeeper coach. I was already in the Middle East, working in Abu Dhabi for a club team and the conversations started. I met Carlos in Doha, we talked and myself and two other staff members joined Carlos and accepted the Iran job and that was the start of it,” he explained.
While he did not accompany Queiroz to Colombia or Egypt, instead taking over at the “mighty Glentoran” where he won an Irish Cup, McDermott did not hesitate in following him to Qatar and now to Ghana after a spell with League of Ireland First Division side Cobh Ramblers.
“Here we are again, another brilliant project with a brilliant football nation. It’s an opportunity I don’t think anyone can say no to, to work with the Ghana football team and Carlos again, it’s been brilliant.”
While many managers and their coaching staff have a few months to plan everything from travel to squad selection for the World Cup, Queiroz and McDermott did not have that luxury.
Appointed in April, they did not get to work with their full 26-man squad until the end of May, with just one full training session before a 1-1 friendly draw against Wales on 2 June and a flight to the US the next day.
“The logistics and travel were already in place, we tweaked them a little,” he said. “A big group of our players didn’t arrive until 30 May and we didn’t have a full training session until 31 May.
“We had two days, played Wales and flew the next day to the US. We had to submit our 26-man list before we even played Wales but the players have been brilliant to work with.”
Their last-minute preparations do not seem to have hampered things on the pitch, with Ghana beating Panama 1-0 in their opening Group L game in Toronto, courtesy of a 95th-minute winner from Caleb Yirenkyi.
McDermott has been impressed with how the squad has gelled off the pitch and their musical talents.
“When they are together, as you can see from social media, there is a bond and it’s new to me. I’ve been around the Middle East, Asia, Ireland and US and have had groups with good atmospheres but this, it’s hard to express it. I stand sometimes and just enjoy it,” he said.
“It was the night before we played Panama in the hotel and they have a tradition where the day before their first game after the training session they have a prayer and a song.
“The song went from the pitch and carried on to the 30-minute bus to the hotel and carried on to the hotel and once they got going they got going, it went on for an hour and a half. When you see the positive energy it gives them it’s nice. My foot started tapping!”
