Gordon hopes ex-boss Keane lands Hibs job

THE fact that his relationship with Roy Keane became strained towards the end of the Irishman’s time at Sunderland doesn’t prevent Craig Gordon from now viewing the episode in context. A £9million signing from Hearts in 2007, the goalkeeper was one of the main reasons why the Black Cats claimed 15th place in the Premiership the year after rocketing to promotion. By the start of the following season, though, Gordon regularly found himself in the manager’s crosshairs — with Keane’s departure in December 2008 a relief to all who were no longer meeting his exacting standards. But the keeper never held a grudge. He only ever had the deepest admiration for what the Manchester United legend initially achieved on Wearside. So much so that, if talk of Keane (right) ending his 11-year exile from football management comes to pass at Hibs this summer, Gordon would anticipate a city rival bouncing back up off the floor. ‘It would be brilliant for Scottish football in terms of the stature he would bring and the press attention he would bring, not only to Hibs, but to Edinburgh as well,’ said the 39-year-old, one of four players nominated for the PFA Scotland Player of the Year award yesterday. ‘He could be a very good manager. He proved that early on at Sunderland when he got them promoted and kept them in the league. ‘You look where Sunderland are now. Maybe people didn’t think (Keane’s) was a huge achievement at the time, but it actually was. To be able to get them promoted and keep them in the league for the whole time he was there… ‘So, yeah, I would love it, let’s see if it happens.’ Keane’s only subsequent managerial post was a spell at Ipswich Town which ended in 2011. Despite being assistant with the Republic of Ireland, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest, there has clearly been a reluctance from chairmen to trust him to be anything other than a quick fix. Gordon believes that underestimates a man he reckons has the natural intelligence to adapt his approach to the modern-day game. Asked about his ‘hard but fair’ reputation at Sunderland, Gordon added: ‘Oh yeah, absolutely. Without a doubt. ‘I think he could be a good manager, I really do. There’s obviously been a couple of clubs where it hasn’t worked out for him, for whatever reason. ‘But certainly while at Sunderland the spirit in that team to stay in that league, the amount of late goals we got to get a draw or get a win that scraped us by to get enough points to stay in the league, was a huge achievement. ‘There’s different ways to do it. You can be a hands-on coach, you can be a manager and let other people do the coaching, there’s definitely different styles of managers out there. ‘I don’t think that would really make much of a difference. ‘He would maybe need to have a bigger team around him than was the case for everybody 15 years ago or whatever. ‘I don’t see that being a big problem at all really, I think he would do well. ‘I’ve got nothing but good things to say. I would love it if he came to Edinburgh, it would be great.’