Ruaidhri Higgins, who oversaw his 100th game in last week's 1-1 draw with Shelbourne, is reportedly in negotiations with League One club Barnsley and is the front-runner to take over as manager at Oakwell Stadium.

With Derry, Higgins has had success since taking on his first senior management post at the Brandywell a little more than two years ago. He has twice helped them qualify for European competition. In addition, he guided the team to a historic FAI Cup victory over Shelbourne at the Aviva Stadium in November.

With just one victory in their previous seven games, Derry City is now in third position in the Premier Division, six points behind Shamrock Rovers.

The 38-year-old Higgins may not be in the dugout for Derry's Friday night home game against Sligo Rovers if Barnsley are successful in their quest to find a new manager as quickly as possible.