Wenger: Keane exit will take time to plug

Arsene Wenger has warned Manchester United will take time to cope with the loss of Roy Keane, describing the Irishman as the club’s “most influential player of the past decade“.

However, the Arsenal boss accepted Keane was “playing a dangerous game” with his outspoken criticism of certain team-mates earlier this season.

Wenger understands the battle which United will face in replacing their talismanic captain, who has played his last game for the club, having lost former Gunners skipper Patrick Vieira in the summer.

“It is a big loss for them and it takes time for a team to adjust to the loss of a player like that – like it was with us with Patrick,“ he observed.

“You can always replace the quality of the player in the club, but it’s taken us time to make the separation with Vieira, and it will take time for United to do that as well.”

As for Keane’s sudden departure, Wenger admitted: “It was a complete surprise, although he looked recently more and more disenchanted with his partners in the team so maybe it’s not as big a surprise as it might look.

“I feel Roy Keane was a massive influence on the pitch from what I’ve seen when we’ve played them. He was a football brain for Manchester United, he was a highly-motivated player and a quality player.

“I don’t think, at 34, that he’s the central midfielder that he was at 28 but he’s still a top Premiership player and will still be a loss for Manchester United.”

Wenger was unwilling to be drawn into a discussion of the reasons behind Keane’s shock exit, although he noted the midfielder’s public criticism of United’s recent form, which was prevented from being aired on MUTV.

“I must say that for many years, you didn’t hear anything from Roy Keane. But this season you have heard from him in the newspapers and I feel that is a dangerous game,” he added.

“I’ve had disagreements with many players, including Sylvain Wiltord, but he didn’t leave in the middle of the season. Sometimes you have disagreements with people but it doesn’t mean you don’t respect them.”

Wenger believes Keane will have no trouble in finding another club, but when asked if he would consider signing him, he insisted: “No, not at the moment, I wouldn’t consider that.”