Roy Keane reactivates his Instagram and writes a nine-word post amid managerial return speculation.
Before moving to the screen, Keane retired from football in June 2006 and was appointed Sunderland manager a few weeks later.He subsequently proceeded to Ipswich Town before working as an assistant for Ireland, Aston Villa, and Nottingham Forest.
Keane has been out of coaching since 2019, but in his most recent Instagram post, he hinted at a possible return.”DM us if you’re looking to hire a manager,” he said, captioning a photo of himself on a boat with former Manchester United colleague Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
It’s Keane’s first post on the social media site since April 2022, and his two million fans are treated to a new photo.While his caption with the former United manager may pique fans’ interest in returning to the dugout, his recent words suggest he’s only messing about.On the Stick to Football podcast last month, he stated: “We were talking about going back into management. I think the longer you’re out of it, the more you think.”
“The last few conversations we’ve had about going back to it, even before Frank [Lampard] stepped in, have made me reconsider, and I’m leaning toward not going back. I just don’t think it’s worth the bother, and people are continuously disrespecting you.” Sunderland won the championship in Keane’s first season and remained in the Premier League until he left in late 2008.
He joined Ipswich a few months later, but stayed at Portman Road for a little under two years. After nearly three years away, Keane rejoined the Republic of Ireland senior team as Martin O’Neill’s assistant, where they remained until 2018.
During that period, Keane was Paul Lambert’s assistant at Villa in 2014 but left to focus on Ireland before returning to Forest in 2019 for a brief stint in the same job. Aston Villa vs Tottenham LIVE: Champions League hopes battle in critical duel: kick-off time, team news, and how to watch
This weekend, Champions League hopefuls Aston Villa and Tottenham face off in a game that both Premier League sides must win.
Last time around, both teams won top-flight games to boost their chances of finishing in the top four.Villa rallied to a 3-2 win over Luton to secure the final Champions League slot.
Tottenham narrowed the gap in fifth place to five points after a 3-1 victory over Crystal Palace, and they still have a game in hand. Ange Postecoglou’s side cannot afford to let Villa’s eight-point lead grow after losing their last three Premier League encounters with the West Midlands team.
Aston Villa against Tottenham: What a player!
Ollie Watkins scored twice in the win over Luton, cementing his status as one of the Premier League’s best players this season. With his brace, he now has 16 goals this season, trailing just Erling Haaland of Manchester City in the Golden Boot race. His tally is also the highest in a single Premier League season.
Only Christian Benteke (19 in 2012–13) and Dwight Yorke (17 in 1995–96 and 1996–97) have scored more goals in a single season for Aston Villa. Watkins particularly enjoys playing for Tottenham Hotspur, having scored three goals and won four of his seven encounters with the club, including the winner in November’s reverse fixture.
Alan Shearer believes he will join England’s Euro 2024 squad and start alongside Harry Kane due to his recent form.Shearer suggested playing Ollie Watkins in the No. 9 position.Kane’s ability to play as a No. 10 is a natural component of his game, which he has used to great effect for England, Tottenham, and Bayern Munich.
“Bellingham would play in a deeper midfield position beside Rice. “Foden and Saka continue to cut in from out wide. Yes, that would be a first, as the two have never played together for England, but Watkins appears to be the Premier League’s most improved player this season. Former Spurs manager Harry Redknapp reveals he adores current Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou and reacts to the Australian’s manager of the year accolade.
Aston Villa have won their previous three Premier League encounters with Tottenham, giving them their longest league winning streak since January 1996 (four games).
Spurs lost this same fixture 2-1 last season, ending an 11-game unbeaten Premier League record at Villa Park from March 2009 to April 2022. They last suffered consecutive league defeats away to Aston Villa in November 2004.
Aston Villa have scored 59 Premier League goals this season, the most in a single season since 2007–08 under Martin O’Neill (71). It’s their most at this point in a top-tier season since 1932–33 (68).
Aston Villa at Tottenham: Team News
The hosts are missing midfielder Jacob Ramsey, who was injured during their 3-2 win over Luton Town last Saturday. Boubacar Kamara, Tyrone Mings, Emiliano Buendia, Jhon Duran, and Diego Carlos stay in the treatment room.
Spurs will be without many key players due to injuries, including Richarlison, who faces a race against time to recover. Pedro Porro is on the verge of returning, but Fraser Forster, Manor Solomon, and Ryan Sessegnon have been absent for some time.
- Tottenham have only won one of their previous six Premier League away games (D3 L2), despite scoring two or more goals in five of them, all of which have come in the last five visits. Spurs last scored two or more goals in six consecutive away league games from May to September 2017.
- Aston Villa have won four of their previous five Premier League games, including three in a row. It is Villa’s fourth run of three or more straight wins under Unai Emery, a feat accomplished by only two managers since Martin O’Neill’s departure in 2010 and before Emery’s arrival (Dean Smith in 2020 and Steven Gerrard in 2022).
- Spurs have scored in all 26 Premier League matches under Ange Postecoglou, the longest streak of scoring from a manager’s first game in the English top flight since Arthur Rowe at Tottenham in the 1950–51 season, when they won the league (scored in the first 27 games).
- What’s been stated about Aston Villa’s match against Tottenham?
Jamie O’Hara, a former Tottenham midfielder, hopes Harry Kane fails to win the Champions League this season. “I don’t know if I’d want him to win the Champions League, I want him to go out there and win the Bundesliga,” he was quoted as saying in the Sports Bar. “He had the opportunity to do that with the Spurs, and we kind of blew it, didn’t we?”
“He’s left us and if he goes and wins the Champions League, it’s almost like, ‘Yeah, see, I told you so, Spurs weren’t big enough so I moved on and got into a better team.'”I’m not sure if I want Kane to win the Champions League just yet; next season is OK, because he left the first season. Do you see what I mean?
“If it wasn’t for Ange [Postecoglou] coming in, we were in the mud, and Ange really got us out of a hole and changed the fortunes, and we look like we’re alright.”However, your star player may quit due to dissatisfaction with the team’s performance and desire to win the Champions League.And then he wins the Champions League; it’s like a kick in the teeth for Tottenham, isn’t it?
“Look, I’m not going to lose sleep over it if he does, I want him to win trophies, just not the Champions League yet.”
- Aston Villa have surrendered nine goals in their last four Premier League games at Villa Park (W2 L2), more than in their previous 16 home games (8). They’ve conceded two or more goals in each of their previous four games, but have won two of them (3-2 at Burnley, 4-2 at Nottingham Forest); between 2019-20 and 2022-23, Villa won only one of 31 games when conceding two or more goals at home (D4 L26).
- Douglas Luiz has scored all nine Premier League goals this season at Villa Park, with only Georginio Wijnaldum (11 in 2015-16) and Les Ferdinand (10 in 2000-01) netting more in a season with 100% at home. In his career, 16 of the Brazilian’s 20 Premier League goals (80%) have come at Villa Park, the highest percentage at a single stadium of any player with 20 or more goals in league history.
- Since the start of the 2020-21 season, only Mohamed Salah (118) and Harry Kane (96) have more Premier League goals and assists combined than Tottenham’s Son Heung-min (63 goals, 29 assists). Son has also scored five goals in three games at Villa Park (one every 52 minutes); among players who have played 250+ minutes in a Premier League stadium, only Luis Suárez at Carrow Road (one per 38 minutes) has a higher mins/goal ratio than Son.