Roy Keane has been quite vocal of Michael Carrick in recent weeks
Roy Keane hasn’t been afraid to share his thoughts on Michael Carrick – or his wife for that matter. Carrick, 44, was appointed Manchester United interim head coach earlier this month following the sacking of Ruben Amorim.
It’s been a triumphant start for the former England international who earned stunning victories against Manchester City and Arsenal in his first two games in charge. While some have suggested that Carrick’s positive and immediate impact on the squad could place him in good stead to earn the permanent job, should the good results continue, Keane hasn’t been on that particular bandwagon.
The ex-United captain sensationally claimed after the 3-2 win over Arsenal that he wouldn’t give Carrick the permanent job even if he won the last remaining 15 games of the season.
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He insisted that despite the uplift in morale that Carrick has introduced, United require a “bigger and better manager” to lead the football club. He said on Sky Sports: “Two great performances but anyone can win two games.
“Even if they do get into fourth, I still wouldn’t be convinced he’s the man for the job. Absolutely not. They need a bigger and better manager. But he has got the opportunity and what a chance for him, and you know what, he’s taking it.”
In spite of his comments pouring doubt on Carrick’s ability to be the permanent boss, he’s since seemingly reneged on his past remarks and has insisted he wants him to get the job. Speaking on The Overlap’s Stick to Football podcast earlier this week, Keane admitted: “I hope they give it [the permanent job] to him.
“I hope they give it to him in the summer.” He did state that while he hopes Carrick is promoted, he believes it’ll be the wrong move for the United hierarchy to make. Talking to Gary Neville, Keane added: “I don’t think it’s the right decision, good luck with it.
“Yeah, but, I’m sticking to my guns. I’ve said my piece, I think that he’s got the job, and if he gets it in the summer then you go ‘listen, good luck to him’, but as a caretaker manager, it’s a different animal to being manager of United trying to win league titles over the next two, three, four, five years, whatever it might be.
“I think you can get a better manager than Carrick, absolutely. But I think he’s doing a good job, perfect timing for him, and even if he doesn’t get the United job, these results a bit like Ruud [Van Nistelrooy], he can get another job, probably another Premiership manager.”
It wasn’t just Carrick that took the brunt of Keane’s comments but his wife, Lisa Roughead, too who was subject of a dig aimed by the Republic of Ireland icon. Lisa was accused of having a “big mouth” by the 54-year-old who said: “His wife can always come in [if Carrick doesn’t do well], cause she’s got a bit of a big mouth sometimes. She’s probably doing the team talk.”
The comments reignited a feud between the pair from 2014 when Keane had aimed his trademark criticism in Carrick’s direction. After United suffered a 2-0 defeat to Olympiacos, Carrick conducted an interview which Keane later lambasted on TV.
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The pundit said: “That interview was just like the performance, flat. He should say a bit more, have a bit more urgency, even in the interview.” Lisa didn’t take too kindly to Keane’s words as she took to Twitter, now X, and wrote: “Roy Keane what a ****, says anything to provoke a reaction.”
She later showed regret for her post by deleting it and added: “Deleted my tweet… Emotions got the better of me.” Carrick himself has also made his feelings clear on Keane’s criticism, insisting that he ‘isn’t bothered’ about what Keane and fellow former United players who have moved into punditry have to say.
“They’re not putting more pressure on me,” Carrick said ahead of the Manchester derby. “I don’t feel that. There are plenty of opinions around, some positive, some not too much. It’s totally irrelevant in terms of what I focus on.
“There’s a lot that can be said, it’s the way of the world. I’m not going to pay too much attention to that. For me, the players and staff, we focus on how we’re going to succeed.”
Asked specifically about Keane, Carrick added: “It didn’t bother me.”