Martin O'Neill and Roy Keane: Ireland's Unlikely Double Act

Martin O’Neill’s appointment as manager was a coup of sorts for Ireland. But will it work out with his assistant, Roy Keane?

Trust the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) to pull a rabbit out of the bag when it comes to appointing managers for the national team. For a country that sits 60thAi??in the latest FIFA rankings and withAi??the association crippled with multi-million pounds debt, one could be forgiven to expect a note of low-profile in managerial appointments. But that is not the way they like to do things in Ireland apparently. Back in 2008, the world took notice when none other than the legendary Giovanni Trapattoni, the most decorated manager in Italian domestic football, was installed at the helm of the Ireland national team. Unfortunately for Il Trap, it never quite worked out as first Thierry Henry ai??i?? or rather his hands ai??i?? cruelly denied Ireland a place in the 2010 World Cup before a disastrous qualifying campaign for the 2014 edition brought down the curtains to his reign.

O'Neill: With much to ponder — O’Neill: With much to ponder

The man to replace the Italian is Martin Oai??i??Neill, but that is just half the story. In their desperation to land the former Celtic and Aston Villa boss, who had admirers in the Premier League, FAI have taken the ultimate gamble and agreed to his choice of assistant manager ai??i?? Roy Keane. In an ironic twist of fate, the man whose grievances with FAI are long-standing, numerous and have sometimes even bordered on paranoia, are for now bedfellows ai??i?? uncomfortable maybe, but still bedfellows all the same.

It is rare in football that the appointment of an assistant makes more headlines than that of the manager. But such is the nature of the beast that is being dealt with here. Make no mistake about it that Martin Oai??i??Neill is a fine manager in his own right. Most of the teams he has managed have punched well above their weight as Oai??i??Neill has constantly got the best out of the limited resources at his disposal. This is something that is bound to stand him in good stead as Ireland team, to put it mildly, are not blessed with the brighter talents in world football. While his reputation may have been slightly tarnished at his last job with Sunderland, where he was sacked in March, he still remains hugely respected and well liked in the footballing circles.

The same can hardly be said about his new assistant manager though. When Sir Alex Ferguson brands a man as too acerbic for his own taste, he surely is one to be wary off. Never a man to hold back his opinions, Keane, ever since his playing days, has been at loggerheads with FAI over a number of issues regarding how the game is administered in Ireland. The most infamous of these incidents took place at Saipan in 2002, when Keane, the captain of the team at the time, walked out of the squad on the eve of the World Cup after he fell out with the management over practice conditions and general attitude of the squad. Eleven years on, he is now back in the national fold.

In between of course, Keane had cut his teeth in management with spells at Sunderland and Ipswich Town. At the north-east club, he tasted moderate success with a promotion to the Premier League in 2007 and survival in the top flight in the following season. However, a run of poor results at the start of 2008-09 season and difference of opinion with the club hierarchy saw Keane leaving the post through mutual consent before the new year. His spell at Ipswich was less successful as the team finished 15^th in the Championship in his only full season in charge. His abrasive style of management ruffled a few feathers among the players at both the clubs he managed and helped him win few friends. So it was perhaps no surprise that after nearly 3 years in managerial wilderness, Keane had readily accepted the role of second fiddle to Oai??i??Neill ai??i?? something at which he might have sniggered during his pomp.

But while the reason behind Keane jumping at the offer is understandable, what is less fathomable is Oai??i??Neillai??i??s insistence on making the offer in the first place. If a strict taskmaster is what Oai??i??Neill was looking for, there surely were plenty of others available who wouldnai??i??t carry the same sort of baggage as Keane does. As a leopard never changes its spots, it would be foolish to expect Keane to walk into his new job sans his massively inflated ego and his penchant for courting controversy. His fans in Ireland have steadily dwindled in number as comments such as the ones he made in criticism of both playersai??i?? and supportersai??i?? attitude during Irelandai??i??s disastrous Euro 2012 campaign have not helped. Perhaps the most pertinent point of all is the fact whether Keane ai??i?? a fiercely independent and opinionated individual ai??i?? can ever work in tandem with someone else. While Oai??i??Neill will surely appreciate and even actively seek Keaneai??i??s advice and inputs, things may get spicy if he refuses to implement them accordingly. An ordinary assistant will accept such snub as a part of his job, but itai??i??s hard to imagine Keane displaying such humility under such circumstances.

Admittedly, this is all conjecture. It may so happen that Martin Oai??i??Neill and Roy Keane truly end up being the so called managerial dream team, in the mould of Clough and Taylor, Ferguson and Kidd, and other such legendary pairings. But with Keane in the mix, the chances of dreams turning into nightmares are never too far off.

Martin O’Neill And Roy Keane: An Unlikely Double Act For Ireland

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