Manchester United's first-team coach Jonny Evans. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP via Getty Images)placeholder image
Manchester United's first-team coach Jonny Evans. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP via Getty Images)
Former Manchester United star Roy Keane has criticised the appointment of Northern Ireland legend Jonny Evans on Michael Carrick’s coaching staff at the Premier League giants – blasting “what has he done to be a coach of Man United’s first team?”.
Evans, who won three Premier League titles and enjoyed two stints as a player at Old Trafford, was initially brought back as a coach earlier this month by interim manager Darren Fletcher following Ruben Amorim’s exit.
The 38-year-old has been retained by Carrick as United’s former captain takes charge until the end of this season with ex-England coach Steve Holland and Jonathan Woodgate also taking up roles.
Following his retirement at the end of last season, Evans was appointed as United’s head of loans and pathways, but left in December with BBC Sport reporting he “wishes to spend more time with his family and his departure is amicable”.
Evans, who earned 107 caps for Northern Ireland and represented his country at Euro 2016, is getting his first taste of senior coaching with the Red Devils under former Middlesbrough boss Carrick – but club legend Keane has questioned his credentials.
“What about the other coaches he’s brought in?,” said Keane in a tense exchange with Gary Neville on The Overlap’s Stick to Football. “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 and ironically comes back working with the first team. That’s a big step up isn’t it?
“On one hand you’re (Neville) 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’.
"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?
"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!”
Keane previously signed Evans on loan during his time in charge of Sunderland with the defender making 18 Championship appearances to help the club seal Premier League promotion.
Evans returned to the Stadium of Light the following season as he continued to build up senior experience, playing 15 times in England’s top-flight under Keane.
"Jonny was on £10,000 a week, but the chairman came to me and said Jonny wants £20,000 a week, so I rang him up and asked him why he wanted £20,000 and he said that he had read my book,” said Keane. “And I was like 'You read my book?'.
"He told me he had and that in the book it said that you’ve got to negotiate hard to get as much money as you can, so we gave him £20,000 a week and he was a brilliant signing for us."