Roy Keane has spoken to the Irish FA (FAI) three times about taking over as Republic of Ireland manager.
Keane was part of the original shortlist to replace Stephen Kenny, who departed as manager of Republic of Ireland in November.
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And according to the Irish Examiner, the Manchester United legend has spoken to the FAI three times about the vacancy.
The FAI are keen to announce a new manager in the near future and Keane is one of the frontrunners for the post.
He has experience of coaching the side, serving as assistant to Martin O'Neill from 2013 to 2018.
The 52-year-old also has won 67 caps during his playing career, captaining the country to the World Cup finals in 2002.
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The FAI insisted that they have given themselves until next month to find a permanent boss with another United stalwart in John O'Shea currently in interim charge.
Director of football Marc Canham revealed that 'existing contractual obligations' had caused a delay in their search.
"The board of the FAI had its scheduled end of month meeting this morning and a range of issues were discussed,” they said.
"The process to appoint our senior men's team head coach will now be finalised, led by the CEO (Jonathan Hill) and director of football (Canham), with an announcement planned in April, as planned."
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While Keane might have coached the Irish team alongside O'Neill, the former midfielder has not held a managerial role since 2011 when he was in charge of Ipswich Town.
The Cork-born coach also managed Sunderland from 2006 to 2008 and is still among the candidates to succeed Michael Beale earlier this season.
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The Black Cats are still looking for a new boss with Mike Dodds in interim charge while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Frank Lampard and Scott Parker have also been linked.
Keane's time in the Irish set-up has also included controversies such as blasting Everton for putting pressure on Seamus Coleman and James McCarthy to pull out of international duty, a claim that was refuted by the Toffees.
He also got in a row with a reporter, who claimed his presence was becoming a distraction within the Republic of Ireland camp before a match against the United States in November 2014.