Roy Keane's Maddest Moments as a Manager
By Tom Gott
After bringing an end to one of the most impressive (and most controversial) playing careers in Premier League history, Roy Keane turned his hand to management in 2006.
It didn't go well and it didn't last long, but it through up some truly insane moments, and there are even rumours that the Irishman could be back in the dugout soon as Salford City have been tipped to bring him in.
If they do, here's what they have to look forward to.
1. Humiliating Craig Gordon
Keane made Scottish goalkeeper Craig Gordon the most expensive goalkeeper in British history in 2007 when he paid a then-record £9m to bring him to Sunderland, so his expectations were high.
However, after a less-than-impressive performance in training, Keane took it upon himself to show Gordon how it was done in bizarre fashion.
"I put the gloves on and I said that if they could get the ball past me I’d give them £1,000 each but, if they missed, they’d have to give me £100," he recalled in his autobiography. "Eight or nine players lined up, and I knew that Craig and the other goalkeepers were pissed off with it.
"They didn’t even look at my goalkeeping skills. They just did their stretches. I tipped a few on to the bar, on to the post, and I kept a clean sheet. I won £800 off the players – I could have lost eight grand. I was trying to generate a bit of banter, but I’d embarrassed, and maybe belittled, the goalkeepers. I hadn’t meant to. But I didn’t think the keeper should be beaten from 25 or 30 yards."
2. Attacking a Tactics Board
It's safe to say that Keane proved to be a little...volatile during his time with Sunderland, and you only have to look at a story from Dwight Yorke's autobiography for proof of that.
"After one game, he asked our kit manager if he can get the tactics board," Yorke wrote.
"'Sure', he said. The board goes up. And Keano takes a running jump and smashes it over with a kung fu kick. He screamed at Danny Collins. 'Never come and ask me for a contract again.' And then the captain, Dean Whitehead, is next. 'Captain? Captain? Some f***ing captain you'."
3. Starting a Fight Against Reading
After a tense defeat to Reading, Keane was not impressed, but it wasn't his Sunderland side who had frustrated him. Instead, it was Reading coach Kevin Dillon.
After the game, Keane wandered in to Reading manager Steve Coppell's office to meet Dillon, and as soon as the coach stood up, Keane slammed his head to the table.
Pressing Dillon's head to the table, Keane unleashed an explicit tirade of abuse at the coach and then calmly walked out as if nothing had happened.
4. Leaving Late Players Behind
When a player turns up late, they're usually hit with a fine and a slap on the wrists, but that's not how Keane likes to do stuff.
Ahead of Sunderland's trip to Barnsley in March 2007, Anthony Stokes, Marton Fulop and Tobias Hysen arrived five minutes late on matchday, only to find that the team coach wasn't there.
Keane instructed the driver to leave the late trio behind, blasting them for their lack of commitment to the team.
5. 'Enjoy Being S**t'
Managers need to know how to motivate their players and help them bounce back from the hard times. For some bosses, that means a comforting arm around the shoulder, but not Keane.
In the 2007/08 season, Keane's struggling Sunderland side came up against Aston Villa, and Keane made sure his players knew that they were up against it.
In his autobiography, then-Sunderland midfielder Danny Higginbotham wrote: '''Listen lads,' he said. 'Basically you're s**t. Try and enjoy the game. You're probably going to get beat. But just enjoy being s**t."
They ended up drawing 1-1, so I guess it worked?
6. Calling Dwight Yorke a Clown
Dwight Yorke signed a new contract with Sunderland at 36 years old, after which he decided to announce his return to international duty. Giving the striker's depleting fitness, Keane was not happy.
"If I'd known what Dwight was going to do, I wouldn't have given him a new contract," said Keane (via The Guardian). "Dwight's a clown and he's on an ego trip; he's brought this on himself. He's retired from international football about five times.
"He's Trinidad and Tobago's most famous player and he's got a stadium named after him out there but he's 36 years old, he can't play two games in a few days and he hasn't played for us all season because he's had a busted cheekbone."
He then called FIFA vice-president Jack Warner a clown and a small man suffering from small-man syndrome for wanting Yorke back on international duty. Charming.
7. Kicking Off at a Phone
Moving on to Keane's time with Ipswich, the Irishman's most famous moment came during a routine press conference when one journalist forgot to turn his phone off.
After being interrupted twice by a ringing phone, Keane was unable to bite his tongue and called out the reporter, and he was (understandably) left stunned when the guilty journalist refused to turn his phone off.
8. BONUS - Picking His Liverpool/Manchester United Combined XI
Sure, this one wasn't during his managerial career, but how can you not include Keane's outstanding attempt at picking a dream XI of players from 2019/20 Liverpool and 1999/00 Manchester United.
Refusing to listen to any opinions, Keane tries his hardest to build a team made up entirely of his former team-mates and slowly starts to lose his mind when Jamie Redknapp doesn't let him.
It could well be Keane's funniest moment of all time, so enjoy.