The fact that the FAI missed out on the opportunity to source funding via the Brexit Adjustment Reserve is "incredible", according to former Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick's Athletic goalkeeper Barry Murphy.
Last week, the FAI's chief football officer Marc Canham acknowledged that it had "missed an opportunity" as an association to make the most of a potential source of funding that is set aside by the European Commission for countries impacted by Brexit.
It comes as the FAI waits to see how much funding it will receive from the Government to put into League of Ireland academies, which are set to be empowered further following the decision to bring the curtain down on the Emerging Talent Programme.
Canham has said that €10m a year "would absolutely transform" the player development and academy scene.
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Speaking on the RTÉ Soccer Podcast, Murphy said: "That statement alone about missing that Brexit Adjustment Fund, it's just incredible.
"We were looking at this. I was speaking to (MEP) Aodhán Ó Ríordáin about it a couple of weeks ago and he was saying this was on the horizon, that there was potentially €800 million there for Ireland to go and look at and to be divvied up (between) people that have been affected mostly by Brexit.
"I think Irish football has been pillaged basically by English teams for God knows how many years and this was a real chance to go and get something from that pot."
Murphy added it's those working on the ground directly within the academy set-ups that need to be trusted with any funding that does materialise in the months to come.
"I think you've got to trust the academies better with it because the people within Irish football, the likes of Will Clarke (LOI academy development manager) and Mark Scanlon (League of Ireland director) who know this league inside-out. They're the ones the money should go to," he said.
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