Karl Lacey is hoping Jim McGuinness will be able to continue as Donegal manager in 2015, despite speculation that he is to be handed a greater role at Celtic FC.

The Glenties man, who is in the final year of his four-year term as manager, has been employed on a part-time basis as a performance consultant by the Glasgow giants since November 2012. But it recently emerged that new Celtic manager Ronnie Deila wants McGuinness involved in an increased capacity, which means he may no longer be able to combine both roles.

"I'd love for him to stay on for another few years, but listen, that's his decision. I'm sure he'll make that at the end of the year," Lacey said at the launch of the All-Ireland football championship series in Dublin yesterday.

The All-Ireland winning centre back also revealed how team captain Michael Murphy had convinced some of the older Donegal players to hold off on retirement after last year's All-Ireland quarter-final meltdown against Mayo.

"There was a few lads that had made decisions in their head that they were gone, but Michael as captain called the other players in. It was just an honest talk between every player and where they were at," he explained.

"A few felt they just couldn't give it any more and other players, we tried to get them to change their minds. We definitely thought there was another Ulster title in this squad, and maybe something you'd regret in years to come." Tweet

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