Keane Throws in Towel

Roy Keane took it upon himself to resign as Sunderland manager today and it hasn’t come as a shock to most of the football world.

Speculation

Speculation has been rife in recent weeks with reports that Keane was considering leaving and that he thought that he had taken the Black Cats as far as he could. Keane took charge in August 2006 and it seemed he was already being lined up as Alex Ferguson’s successor with a good first season getting a strong Sunderland team back into the Premier League. After achieving that it seemed Keane could do no wrong even though Sunderland had a strong squad for the Championship and when he took over they were rock bottom with no expectations after a disastrous spell with now owner Niall Quinn in charge.

Big Money Spent

In the twenty seven months that Keane was in charge he spent a grand total of £80m and a lot of pundits are doubting the calibre of players that he has signed with that large sum. The most talked about expense had been Scotland goalkeeper Craig Gordon who Keane signed from Hearts for a British record of £9m. Although he was highly thought of by many few thought he had the quality to be a top goalkeeper in the Premier League and after Sunderland’s dismal start to this season they may have been proven right. Over the summer Keane spent £30m on some decent players such as Steed Malbranque, El-Hadji Diouf and Anton Ferdinand but they seem to be a couple of steps down from the real quality which needs to be brought in to really achieve something in the Premiership.

The Future?

It remains to be seen whether Keane will be given another crack at the Premiership, is given a chance in the lower leagues or even if he has had enough of football management but it seems that it is irrelevant how good a footballer is it doesn’t mean they will become a good manager.