Roy Keane ruthlessly dismantled the new Manchester United coaching group during a tense exchange with Gary Neville.
Michael Carrick was chosen to replace the sacked Ruben Amorim and his new set-up includes former England assistant Steve Holland, Carrick’s ex-Middlesbrough No 2 Jonathan Woodgate, retired defender Jonny Evans and Under-21s boss Travis Binnion.
During a tense exchange punctuated by moments of levity, he grilled Neville on the make-up of the coaching group, specifically rejected the notion that Holland’s experience makes him some kind of ‘guru’ and hitting out at Evans’ complete lack of coaching experience.
Evans left his job as loans and pathways manager at United in December but was hired back in a more prestigious role just a month later.
Speaking on the latest episode of the Stick to Football podcast, Neville said: ‘Steve Holland, I’m not saying it’s going to bring success, but he is a serious operator. I think it’s made Carrick’s staff better.
Keane was quick to follow up, asking: ‘What about the other coaches he’s brought in?
Roy Keane railed against Jonny Evans’ lack of coaching experience for his Man United role
‘The other two look like people he’s sort of relied upon. I don’t know I’ve never seen the other two coach,’ Neville admitted.
Keane went on: ‘He’s on the beach two weeks ago Jonny Evans. Jonny Evans leaves Man United four or five weeks ago as a loans manager and then Darren Fletcher gives him a job, strangely enough gives him a job.
‘He has two games, Fletch goes and Carrick gives him a job, great isn’t it. We should all go to Barbados for a week.
‘You’re on about getting your coaching staff in, you’re praising one of them saying he’s experienced and then we just let the other two go, Jonathan Woodgate and Jonny Evans. What has Jonny Evans done to be a coach of Man United’s first team?
‘He left the job four weeks ago – loans manager and ironically comes back working with the first team. That’s a big step up isn’t it?
‘It’s a massive step up’, Wright agrees.
‘Thanks Ian’, Keane sarcastically replied, much to the amusement of the panel including Jill Scott and Jamie Carragher.
Neville then tried to clarify his point, adding: ‘When Michael gets announced I think, “okay he’s going to come under a lot of pressure, needs to make sure his information on the training pitch is s*** hot”. If he’d have just brought in Woodgate and Evans that would have made his job a lot harder I think.
Evans, pictured working with the team on Wednesday, left the club last month only to return
Keane then wanted to drill down on Holland becoming the assistant manager.
He said: ‘Going back to what I said earlier, with Steve Holland, you think what United need at this moment in time, is it just about coaching then?
Neville replied: ‘My point is, if Steve Holland is on the training pitch at least you know they’re going to get top class training sessions. I’m not saying they weren’t before because they probably were as well. I don’t know what Evans or Woodgate are like as coaches, don’t know what Carrick is like as a coach.
My point is he has a lot of experience, are you against the appointment of Steve Holland?
Keane thought Neville was deliberately ignoring the counter point to his experience argument about Holland but failing to point out the lack of top level coaching in the rest of Carrick’s staff.
‘On one hand you’re sitting here going, “I’m so happy they brought Steve Holland in”, but they brought another two staff in who you’re dismissing as “I’m not really bothered about them”,’ he said.
‘I wish we were sitting here with you saying he’s brought three staff in and they’re all brilliant, so we think Steve Holland is the man now?
Gary Neville and Roy Keane had a tense exchange on the podcast alongside Ian Wright (right),Jill Scott (centre) and Jamie Carragher (second from left)
‘I think he’s got a lot of experience, a good coach,’ Neville reasoned.
Keane was quick to point out that experience does not guarantee coaching success and gave examples of previous staff members in the post-Ferguson era who did not work out.
‘Steve McCLaren was experienced, Mike Phelan was experienced, these are all guys over the last few years,’ he added.
There was a back-and-forth exchange for the rest of the discussion that went as follows: ‘When David Moyes came in I felt he should’ve kept a bit of experience around him,’ said Neville.
Keane: ‘Who did he bring with him?
Neville: ‘He brought my brother with him and John Murtough…
Keane: ‘Exactly, did that warrant a place at Man United?
Neville: ‘I can see why you’d bring in an ex-player who knows the club, Mourinho did that at Chelsea, that’s not an unusual thing.
Keane: ‘That doesn’t always work, this idea of bringing in someone from the club.
Neville: ‘I’m not saying it’s unusual, Carlo Ancelotti used to do it…
Steve Holland (right) brings experience with him to the No 2 role but Keane pointed out that is no guarantee of success and United have done that many times before
Keane: ‘Before Burnley and Brighton at home…. Fletch knows the club, works with the academy, he knows the girl in the canteen, he rings Sir Alex Ferguson to ask him what colour socks he’s going to wear in the morning. How did the two games go?’
Neville: ‘They didn’t go very well.’
Keane: ‘Exactly.’
Neville: ‘But I’m happy he’s brought Steve Holland in!’
Keane: ‘But you don’t know anything about Jonny Evans’ coaching – because he’s never coached! That’s my point! But he’s gone into Man United – but that’s ok because we’ve got Stevie Holland, our new guru! So excited about these people their experience, you worked with him at England…’
Neville: ‘He did a very good job.’
Keane: ‘What was he working with at England?’
Wright: ‘The best.’
Neville: ‘But it’s not easy to work with England, with the Under-21s he did a good job and the first team.’
Keane: ‘With the Under-7s, here we go…’
Carrick and his coaching group’s first game in charge could not provide much more of a baptism of fire.
United face local rivals Man City on Saturday afternoon as they bid to steady the ship and guide the team to Champions League qualification over the rest of the season.
United have been dumped out of every cup competition this season and will bide their time over making a permanent coach appointment following Amorim’s dismissal.
