Things have been going well for England in recent weeks.
Gareth Southgate’s side looked convincing in their two pre-tournament friendly wins over Nigeria and Costa Rica and there has been nothing but positivity coming out of their training camp.
England get their World Cup campaign underway with a tough-looking game against Tunisia on Monday night and there has been a clear, and perhaps understandable, positive angle to discussions on BBC and ITV over the past few days.
But, when the latest opportunity to ramp up England optimism came, Roy Keane was having none of it.
Following Brazil’s 1-1 draw with Switzerland on Sunday evening, talk among the ITV panel quickly turned to England’s opener.
ITV presenter Mark Pougatch came to Keane first. “It’s been good leading up to the tournament. The vibe is good, everything coming out of the camp has been good…”
Cue a curt interjection from Keane.
“Doesn’t matter,” the former Manchester United and Ireland captain retorted.
“You hear about a lot of that nonsense that everyone is happy and relaxed but listen, when the game starts, for England to go far in this World Cup, Kane. Kane has to perform. To me, there are too many question marks over the other England players, Kane has to produce.”
Well said. Ian Wright, not knowing how to react, offered an awkward fake cough to relieve tension. You can watch Keane’s comments below.
