Championship Clubs Concern O'Neill Dual Role

Several Championship clubs have raised concerns with the English Football League over a potential conflict of interest involving Blackburn Rovers manager Michael O'Neill, who also serves as Northern Ireland's head coach, ahead of the international team's friendly match against Wales on Tuesday evening in Cardiff.

The complaints center on O'Neill's selection of players from Blackburn's relegation rivals for the match, which falls during an international break just before a critical Easter weekend in the Championship schedule. Oxford United, currently 23rd in the standings with 39 points, has four players in Northern Ireland's 22-man squad: defenders Ciaron Brown and Brodie Spencer, and midfielders Jamie Donley and Jamie McDonnell. Portsmouth, sitting 21st with 40 points, has defender Terry Devlin included, while West Bromwich Albion, level on 43 points with Blackburn in 19th, has midfielder Isaac Price. The only Blackburn player in the squad is uncapped teenager Tom Atcheson.

Club officials and fans worry that O'Neill might allocate significant playing time to these opponents' players, potentially fatiguing them ahead of the Championship's resumption on Good Friday and the...