While he may not have managed a team for over a decade, Roy Keane is currently one of the favourites to succeed Stephen Kenny as Republic of Ireland manager.
The Cork man has plenty of previous experience coaching in the Irish setup, spending five years as assistant manager from Martin O'Neill between 2013 and 2018. However, there are some major doubts over his suitability for the top job.
Never considered a brilliant tactician, there are would be serious concerns that the game will have passed him by as he has now gone 12 years without a managerial role. As well as that, his tendency to fall out with players is something that was a bit of an issue during his previous spells with Ireland as both a player and coach.
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Ireland legend feels Roy Keane appointment would benefit FAI
There is no doubt that there are some massive concerns about Roy Keane as a potential Ireland manager, although some feel that there would also be a few benefits.
Speaking to the Sunday World, former Ireland star Ray Houghton believes that the FAI would benefit financially if they were appoint Keane.
There are other connotations around looking to appoint someone of Roy Keane’s profile as Ireland manager.
At this moment, the FAI doesn’t have a shirt sponsor, so having someone like Keane as the manager could change that.
I don’t know whether he is the right man for the job, but there would be a lot of interest around the Ireland team if Roy was the manager and that means revenue could come in.
There are no big commercial deals in place at the moment and having someone like Roy in the top job could attract sponsors as they would want to be part of the story.
The Republic of Ireland men's senior team has been without a main sponsor for quite some time now, something that is far from ideal when you consider the FAI's current financial situation.
The finances on offer will no doubt come into considerable when they appoint the next Ireland manager, be that in terms of salary or potential sponsorship opportunities. The Association have reportedly already been told that an Irish businessman is willing to cover part of Steve Bruce's salary should he be appointed.
It will be interesting to see if any such scenarios would be on the table when it comes to Roy Keane.
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