Keane rips into Man Utd over Evans and new coaching quartet in heated clash with Neville | OneFootball

Roy Keane has ripped into Manchester United over their new coaching setup as the legendary captain engaged in a tense discussion with Gary Neville.

Michael Carrick will lead United on an interim basis for the rest of the season having replaced Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford and has chosen former England assistant Steve Holland, Carrick’s ex-Middlesbrough No 2 Jonathan Woodgate, retired defender Jonny Evans and Under-21s boss Travis Binnion to join him on his staff.

Keane is far from impressed by the quartet chosen by Carrick to aid him at United, rejecting the suggestion that Holland’s experience makes him some kind of “guru” and questioning how Jonny Evans has been handed such a significant role having left his post as loans and pathways manager at United in December.

Keane was quick to follow up, asking: “What about the other coaches he’s brought in?

“The other two look like people he’s sort of relied upon. I don’t know I’ve never seen the other two coach,” Neville admitted.

Keane went on: “He’s on the beach two weeks ago Jonny Evans. Jonny Evans leaves Man United four or five weeks ago as a loans manager and then Darren Fletcher gives him a job, strangely enough gives him a job.

“He has two games, Fletch goes and Carrick gives him a job, great isn’t it. We should all go to Barbados for a week.

“You’re on about getting your coaching staff in, you’re praising one of them saying he’s experienced and then we just let the other two go, Jonathan Woodgate and Jonny Evans. What has Jonny Evans done to be a coach of Man United’s first team?

“He left the job four weeks ago – loans manager and ironically comes back working with the first team. That’s a big step up isn’t it?”

Neville then tried to clarify his point, adding: “When Michael gets announced I think, “okay he’s going to come under a lot of pressure, needs to make sure his information on the training pitch is s*** hot”. If he’d have just brought in Woodgate and Evans that would have made his job a lot harder I think.

Keane then wanted to drill down on Holland becoming the assistant manager.

He said: “Going back to what I said earlier, with Steve Holland, you think what United need at this moment in time, is it just about coaching then?

Neville replied: “My point is, if Steve Holland is on the training pitch at least you know they’re going to get top class training sessions. I’m not saying they weren’t before because they probably were as well. I don’t know what Evans or Woodgate are like as coaches, don’t know what Carrick is like as a coach.

“My point is he has a lot of experience, are you against the appointment of Steve Holland?”

Keane thought Neville was deliberately ignoring the counter point to his experience argument about Holland but failing to point out the lack of top level coaching in the rest of Carrick’s staff.

“On one hand you’re sitting here going, ‘I’m so happy they brought Steve Holland in’, but they brought another two staff in who you’re dismissing as ‘I’m not really bothered about them,'” he said.

“I wish we were sitting here with you saying he’s brought three staff in and they’re all brilliant, so we think Steve Holland is the man now?”

“I think he’s got a lot of experience, a good coach,” Neville reasoned.

Keane was quick to point out that experience does not guarantee coaching success and gave examples of previous staff members in the post-Ferguson era who did not work out.

“Steve McCLaren was experienced, Mike Phelan was experienced, these are all guys over the last few years,” he added.

The discussion continued:

Neville: “When David Moyes came in I felt he should’ve kept a bit of experience around him.”

Keane: “Who did he bring with him?”

Neville: “He brought my brother with him and John Murtough.”

Keane: “Exactly, did they warrant a place at Man United?”

Neville: “I can see why you’d bring in an ex-player who knows the club, Mourinho did that at Chelsea, that’s not an unusual thing.”

Keane: “That doesn’t always work, this idea of bringing in someone from the club.”

Neville: “I’m not saying it’s unusual, Carlo Ancelotti used to do it.”

Keane: “Before Burnley and Brighton at home…. Fletch knows the club, works with the academy, he knows the girl in the canteen, he rings Sir Alex Ferguson to ask him what colour socks he’s going to wear in the morning. How did the two games go?”

Neville: “They didn’t go very well.”

Keane: “Exactly.”

Neville: “But I’m happy he’s brought Steve Holland in!”

Keane: “But you don’t know anything about Jonny Evans’ coaching – because he’s never coached! That’s my point! But he’s gone into Man United – but that’s ok because we’ve got Stevie Holland, our new guru! So excited about these people their experience, you worked with him at England…”

Neville: “He did a very good job.”

Keane: “What was he working with at England?”

Wright: “The best.”

Neville: “But it’s not easy to work with England, with the Under-21s he did a good job and the first team.”