Richard Keys: 'Souness would have had a pocket in his shorts for Roy Keane'

Roy Keane is unlikely to be joining Richard Keys and Andy Gray as a pundit on beIn Sports in Qatar any time soon.

Roy’s old sparring partner Jason McAteer lined up between the former Sky Sports duo this week and the conversation soon turned to Keane, who Andy Gray feels grows frustrated dealing with lesser players than himself.

That prompted Keysy into action, seemingly of the view that Keane wasn’t all that great himself.

"I used to think he was bang average in training. I didn't quite get it."

How Roy Keane convinced @MCATEER4 that he was world-class. pic.twitter.com/2vILZEHbeS

— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) September 29, 2018

“When you say great players, was Roy Keane a great player?”

A stunned Gray managed a bemused “what?”, forcing McAteer into bat for his former Ireland midfield colleague, albeit in a roundabout fashion.

“In training, I used to think he was bang average, I just didn’t quite get it,” McAteer began, before thinking better of going down that road.

“I remember Mick [McCarthy] putting me centre midfield, I don’t remember who we were playing, but it was me and Roy in the middle of the park.

“After 90 minutes I came off and thought, I know what that’s all about now. You give it away, he wins it back. He demands the best from all the players.”

Gray suggested Man Utd wouldn’t have won a fraction of their titles without Keane, but Keyesy wasn’t to be deterred, comparing Keane unfavourably to “a conductor” like Glenn Hoddle, even suggesting Peter Reid “did what Roy Keane does better”.

Sour grapes from Keys. Keane made a jibe years ago he would rather go to the dentist than sit in the sky studios at the time with keys and the likes.

— James Ward (@Wardie1987) September 29, 2018

And there was stinging last word to ensure Roy won’t be booking a flight to Doha in the near future. “Souness would have had a pocket in his shorts for him.”