Keane vows to defend himself against 'lies' in Ferguson's autobiography

Keane vows to defend himself against 'lies' in Ferguson's autobiography

Roy Keane refused to enter a war of words with Sir Alex Ferguson at his first press conference as Republic of Ireland assistant manager.
Ferguson said in his autobiography that Keane, who spent 12-and-a-half years at the heart of a fearsome Manchester United midfield, struggled to cope when his powers as a player waned.
Keane was questioned about the comments in Ferguson's book, but said he would address the 'lies' surrounding their relationship on another occasion.

Glory days: Keane's was Ferguson's leader on the pitch during trophy-laden years at Old Trafford

Back in the spotlight: Roy Keane came across well in his first press conference as Republic of Ireland assistant manager

Sir Alex Ferguson : Roy Keane over stepped the mark

'The beauty of football is that everybody has opinions and I’ve no problem with that,' said Keane.
'The issue I have is when anybody who seems to talk about me, or has issues with what I’ve said in the past, and people will just tell lies about me, that’s when I’ll come out and defend myself.
'I’m not going to sit here and defend myself regarding Alex Ferguson. That’s for another day. I’m not really going to get into that too much. Football is about opinions, no problem about that, but when it’s lies, that’s when you come out and say something.
'Today is not for that. Today is about talking about getting back involved with the Irish team with Martin, all positive. It's not an area I want to go at today.'

Roy Keane: I'm not an animal that needs taming

No leash: Martin O'Neill (left) says he will not gag Roy Keane (right) but does want Twitter caution

Arriving early: Keane arrives at Gannon Park, Malahide for the first day of his new job

Ferguson was an admirer of Keane, when the midfielder was in his prime, but said their relationship soured towards the end of the Irishman's playing career.
‘He was a great player for me, a great captain but he overstepped the mark and the right thing was done,' said Ferguson.
‘We had to cut the strings. We did honour his playing career by paying up his contract, we honoured his testimonial and he did come in and apologise. But he has come out several times over the last few years and really spoiled that.’
Keane famously stormed out of the Ireland camp as a player during the 2002 World Cup as he said the training facilities and hotel were not up to standard, but any fears of a repeat were quickly downplayed.

Still go it: Keane takes part in the training session as he begins his role as assistant to new boss O'Neill

Pointing the way: Republic of Ireland will play a friendly against Latvia at the Aviva Stadium on Friday night

He said: 'The hotel has been lovely, the food has been lovely, the training ground is nice, no potholes. Major progress
'I am quite an emotional person and it was the opportunity to come back to be involved with Ireland, It was the whole package.
'You look at the plusses and minuses and I could not think of any minuses.'

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