City face Sligo on Friday night needing just eight more points to claim their first League of Ireland title since 2005, and only the third in the club’s history. Yet Caulfield’s contract at Turner’s Cross is up at the end of the season, and talks on his future are not at an advanced stage.

“I’m sure everyone knows I’ve a two-year contract which finishes this year. To be honest, I’m totally focused on the club and the league. I’m sure over the next couple of weeks something will happen,” said Caulfield yesterday.

“I don’t go to bed at night not sleeping worrying about it. My main concern for the club is to win and hopefully win the league. I’m totally focused on that but, yeah, we’re coming to the stage of the season where maybe something will happen so we’ll wait and see.”

Winning the title would be the highlight of Caulfield’s managerial career, which has seen him claim three runners-up placings and an FAI Cup win during his three seasons in charge.

That impressive record is sure to have brought admiring glances from savvy chairmen in Scotland and England, and the City boss admits trying his luck cross-channel would eventually appeal to him.

“I’ve always said I’d like to stay in football for the rest of my life, however long that is,” he said yesterday. “If you are asking me, ‘would you like to coach more and more, and maybe go elsewhere?’ Yes, I would, when the time comes, but football is volatile. You can have all the greatest plans in the world and lose two or three games in a row and that all changes in the bigger picture. Myself, I feel I can go further and we can go further.

“I feel here, having come off a difficult second year, I feel the groundwork is done and the systems are in place and that the potential is here to keep driving the club forward, within the reams of the budget.

“I don’t say I have to have two years or three years. I’ve always said that. I don’t want to be there if I’m not wanted. If I walk in to Turner’s Cross some night and the crowd turn against me and they don’t want you. well I don’t want to be here then, and I’ll go home. If the time comes they get fed up and they don’t want you anymore, and you need to go, fine, but I don’t want kneejerk reactions where you’ve 10 fellas roaring or shouting at you, lunatic stuff going on.”

The Turner’s Cross boss believes Dundalk have taken a wise approach this week, tying their head coach to Oriel Park until 2020. “What Dundalk have done with Stephen Kenny... maybe showed common sense, that he has done a fantastic job.

“Managers are changed too often.”

City have a doubt over Robbie Williams but he is expected to recover for Friday while Alan Bennett will be available, having been suspended for the cup win over Bray, although he could face further action.

Meanwhile, Caulfield paid tribute to Sean Maguire, who received his first international call-up this week. “I’m delighted for Seanie. I always felt he was a special boy. Everything he gets, he deserves. Let’s hope he gets into the final squad.

“I don’t get wound up about when he was called up, whether it was three weeks ago or now, the most important thing is when he is called up that everyone knows where he came from and what he had done for the last 18 months and we’ve to take pride in that.”