Having only just been made Manchester United manager until the end of the season, and still yet to oversee his first game in charge, Michael Carrick has already had to deal with one notable headline. Club legend Roy Keane bizarrely took aim at his wife, and the 44-year-old has now issued a public response.
Following Ruben Amorim's sacking, Carrick beat Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to the Old Trafford hot-seat but has a big job on his hands as he looks to restore confidence to the team. Interim before the interim, Darren Fletcher admitted the players are 'fragile' , and things likely won't be helped by the constant sniping from former players.
Keane is not one to hide his opinions whenever working as a pundit, but caught many by surprise when he aimed an unexpected dig at Carrick's wife.
Why Keane Has Issue With Carrick's Wife
The issue dates back to a incident in 2014, Carrick had featured for Man Utd in a loss against Greek side Olympiacos and his post-match comments did not sit well with the Irishman. Keane said of the midfielder: "That interview was just like the performance: flat. He should say a bit more, have a bit more urgency, even in his interview. That just reflected United's performance tonight: flat, with no urgency."
Lisa saw Keane's comments, and she took to social media to defend him, writing on X (formerly Twitter): "Roy Keane what a ****, says anything to provoke a reaction." Although she apologised for the comments, saying, "Deleted my tweet. Emotions got the better of me... just disappointed," it seems as though Keane hasn't let go of his grudge.
After Carrick was recently announced as the club's new head coach, the Irishman did not hold back as he said:
"Well his wife can always come in, because she's got a bit of a big mouth sometimes..."
He then added, "She's probably doing the team talk!"
Michael Carrick
Ahead of Man United's Premier League derby against Manchester City this weekend, Carrick was inevitably asked for his response to Keane’s comments. However, he played down the whole incident, saying:
"It didn’t bother me. They’re not putting more pressure on me. I don’t feel that. There are plenty of opinions around, some positive, some not too much. It’s totally irrelevant in terms of what I focus on.
“I know what we want to improve on, how we want to work with the players. There’s a lot that can be said, it’s the way of the world.
“I’m not going to pay too much attention to that. For me, the players and staff it’s a focus on how we’re going to succeed.”
It's certainly a measured response from Carrick, who clearly didn't want to add any more fuel to the story. Considering he has enough to worry about on the pitch, it's probably a wise move to bite his tongue on this occasion.
Man Utd host Man City on Saturday lunchtime. Carrick's side start the day placed seventh in the Premier League, but only two points behind Liverpool in fourth.