It's no secret that Roy Keane and Alex Ferguson's relationship is frosty at best.
Keane was at Manchester United for seven of Ferguson's 13 Premier League-winning seasons and was captain for four of those campaigns, during a period of unprecedented success for the team.
Their relationship soured, however, around the time of Keane's acrimonious departure. The pair have continued to trade thinly-veiled jabs at each other in the years since Keane left Old Trafford.
Even if they have appeared cordial anytime they have met in person since that 2005 exit, it is clear that there remains some bad blood between Keano and his old boss.
In fact, it appears even using the word "boss" to describe Fergie might be too much for the Corkman, as proven in a clip from this week's episode of The Overlap in association with Sky Bet.
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Roy Keane pulls Gary Neville up on Alex Ferguson habit
This week's episode saw the four-man panel of Keane, Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher and Ian Wright discuss the Premier League's greatest-ever managers after Pep Guardiola claimed his sixth Premier League title in eight years in charge of Manchester City.
Keane appeared somewhat incensed when Neville used the word "boss" to describe their former manager Ferguson.
"Do you call anyone else boss?" 😒
Roy is at it again... 🤣 pic.twitter.com/axnAmlRBIm— The Overlap (@WeAreTheOverlap) May 22, 2024
Keane clarified that his issue was not specifically with Neville, but with the wider group of former Manchester United players who use the word "boss" to describe someone who was last their manager over a decade ago.
Roy Keane: "Why do you call him the boss?"
Gary Neville: "You've asked me this about 400 times in the last 12 months!"
Keane: "I know, but he was your manager at a football club. His contract was with the club and your contract was at the club, why would you call someone boss? I'm serious, do you call anyone else boss besides your wife? Do you call anyone else boss?"
Neville: "I told you this - I still call my school teacher that I was brought through [with] as 'Mr...'"
Keane: "Yeah, that's fine - but you're not calling someone 'boss'"
Neville: "You've called someone that for like 25 years-"
Keane: "Yeah because that was your circumstances, that was the club you were in...I don't get it. Not just you, everyone. 'Boss.' I don't get it."
Undoubtedly the funniest moment of the exchange is when Neville says he would "never" call Ferguson 'Alex' - to which Keane says in typical fashion, "That's his name!"
Ian Wright then came to Gary Neville's defence, saying that he has similar tendencies with his former managers from his playing days.
It certainly seems an irrational hang-up from Roy Keane given how common it is to hear retired players refer to their former managers by terms such as 'gaffer' or 'boss.' Perhaps it is symptomatic of his long-held frustrations with his former boss - sorry, manager.
Keane placed Ferguson second on his list of the top five greatest-ever Premier League managers, behind City manager Guardiola. In fairness to the Corkman, he acknowledged that he could be seen to be anti-Ferguson, and said that the times the pair had shared together at Manchester United had been "absolutely amazing."
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