Keane goes – for the good of Sunderland?

Just a couple of days ago I wrote an article saying that Sunderland needed Roy Keane to get back some of the fighting spirit, will to win and passion that he has always possessed by the bucket load.

Walked away

Yesterday, after five defeats in six games and with the side sitting third from bottom of the Premier League, Keane walked away from his post.

A statement from Sunderland said that they had ‘reluctantly accepted’ his decision.

Right man

Keane has been looking and sounding less and less happy over the past couple of weeks and his comments about questioning whether or not he was the right man to manage the Club at this time would have raised the alarm bells with anyone who was listening to what he was saying.

He has been holding talks with chairman Niall Quinn and the rest of the board over the past couple of days and the discussions have resulted in the manager’s departure. It is not suggested that the Board wanted Roy Keane to leave and I would guess that they did what they could to try to make him change his mind.

Chairman Niall Quinn told the club’s official website,

“First of all on behalf of everyone here I would like pay thanks to Roy Keane for all his hard work in progressing this club, lifting its status and growing its worldwide profile. Roy deserves huge respect for his contribution and the manner in which he guided the club from the depths of the Championship back to the Premier League. His winning mentality and singled mindedness were just what this club needed when Drumaville took over shortly before his arrival. Roy’s decision to stand aside and allow someone else to take charge of the next chapter sums up his desire to always do what is best for the club. Even in his departure he has been more concerned for the welfare of the players and his staff than himself. The board has reluctantly accepted his decision and wish him and his family well for the future.”

Keane took charge in August 2006 after Niall Quinn had overseen a disastrous start to the season as Chairman/Manager. It seemed a strange appointment as Quinn and Keane had publicly fallen out over Keane’s behaviour at the 2002 World Cup which led to him coming home before a ball was kicked. Their differences were obviously put to one side and with a mutual respect they developed a fine partnership. The results were immediate and Keane guided Sunderland to the Championship title the following May.

Better things

Last season the club eventually consolidated their place in the top flight after flirting with the relegation battle for some time. It was an acceptable first season in the top flight but better things were expected this time around after the Board backed their manager with significant sums of money in the Summer.

Apart from the high of the victory over Newcastle, the first one for nearly thirty years, Sunderland have won just two of ten league games. A victory on penalties over League One Northampton and then defeat at home to Blackburn in the Carling Cup have not helped the situation.

Walk away

Speculation, mainly fuelled by what Keane has himself said, has suggested for some time that Keane had done all he thought he could at the club and was ready to walk away.

If Niall Quinn is right and this is a totally selfless act by Roy Keane who has left because he thinks it needs a new man to rescue the downward spiral the team has drifted in to then you have to admire what he has done.

If it is more of a case that the man who is used to winning things didn’t like the fact that he was coming under pressure because of poor performance then that isn’t so admirable.

Quitter

The Roy Keane that we have all grown to know over the last few years could never be regarded as a quitter so we will just have to accept that Niall Quinn is right and Keano has done what he thought was best for the club.

Apparently, ex-Newcastle United boss, Sam Allardyce has been installed as the early favourite to replace Keane. Two people who will be very pleased by this news are Newcastle owner Mike Ashley and Director of football Dennis Wise. This would probably mean that they would no longer be the two most hated people in Newcastle!

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