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Football

07th Feb 2024

The possibility of Roy Keane getting the Ireland job has taken another twist

Lee Costello

“People constantly disrespect you.”

The possibility of former Man United star Roy Keane getting the Republic of Ireland management job has taken yet another twist.

Since Stephen Kenny’s departure in November 2023, the position of Ireland manager has been vacant, with several candidates named as his potential replacement.

Along with Keane, the likes of Lee Carsley, Neil Lennon, and Gus Poyet have also been linked with the job, and less than two weeks ago, the former United captain staked his claim on the Stick to Football podcast.

“Yeah, international football – I enjoyed it when I was a coach for a while,” Keane said.

“I like the dynamics of it, where you’re not in every day, and it’s not about bringing players in and I suppose dealing with the board every week or the academy.

“Yeah, that does appeal. I did like the dynamics when I was coaching with Martin with the Irish team.

“We had a little bit of success, and when you’ve had a little bit of success, then it’s brilliant, and obviously there are disappointments.

“So, yeah, that could be an option.”

The possibility of Roy Keane getting the Ireland job has taken another twist.

However, on this week’s episode of the show, Gary Neville put the question to Keane again, only his tone and enthusiasm for the role was very different.

“We were talking about going back into management, I think the longer you are out of it, the more you think – well, the last few chats we’ve had about going back to it, even before Frank [Lampard] came in as a guest – I am swaying towards not going back into management.

“I just think it’s not worth the hassle and people constantly disrespect you. Not talking about Pep (Guardiola) and (Jurgen) Klopp’s level, but when you go down a certain level and you have any sorts of chats or discussions about going back into work [management] – I’m not joking you, people think you are so desperate that you’ll sign anything.”

Related links:

The FootballJOE quiz: Were you paying attention? – episode 10