Speaking exclusively to ITV Sport, Martin O'Neill admits that in taking the Sunderland hot-seat he has achieved something that his former mentor at Nottingham Forest, Brian Clough, had always dreamed of.
"I've been told that he used to say that one of his regrets in life was not managing Sunderland," O'Neill revealed to Ned Boulting.
And the Northern Irishman admits that working under Clough as player has left a lasting impression.
"It would be difficult to work with a man like Brian Clough for five years and not feel something has got into you," O'Neill said.
"He's one of the great managers of all time, possibly the most charismatic manager that has ever been in the game."
O'Neill spent a decade at Nottingham Forest, but only with the arrival of Clough in 1975 did he reach his career heights.
"He stepped into Nottingham Forest in January 1975 and he changed all of our lives," O'Neill continued. "All of us at the football club would never have dreamed that five years later we'd be lifting the European Cup for the second time."
Watch the full interview above
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