Is fiery Keane pining to be a club manager once again?

IRELAND assistant manager Roy Keane dominated the press conferences in the build-up to tonight’s Nations League opener against Wales. Harry Arter is missing from the Irish squad having had a row with Keane before June’s friendly against the USA. Keane actually watched Arter in action recently, taking in a dire goalless draw between his loan club Cardiff and Huddersfield at the John Smith’s Stadium. Ireland captain Seamus Coleman was asked if he had ever had a showdown with Keane. ‘I wouldn’t say a fallingout,’ smiled the Everton defender. ‘He was a top player and expects the best. That’s something we have to deal with.’ Coleman’s smiles were in stark contrast to the last time we saw Keane, the ITV pundit having cut a bored and irritated figure during the World Cup. It raises the question, how much longer will he continue to exist as No 2 to Martin O’Neill? If Wales win and beat Denmark’s part-timers on Sunday, it could be March before Ireland’s next fixture of meaning. For Keane, that will be no joke. TV: LIVE on Sky Sports, 7.45pm.