Source: Daily_Mail
Odd man in - Keane's box office appeal is just the job at Portman Road
Roy Keane and Ipswich Town - on the face of it an unlikely match. One of the game's most driven but controversial characters in charge of a sleepy, homely club with little recent achievement.[LNB]Keane, whose shock appointment in charge of the East Anglian side is believed to be imminent, would be expected to put them back on the map like no manager since Sir Bobby Robson, who took the team to FA Cup and UEFA Cup success in 1978 and 1979.[LNB] Swift return: Keane is set to be named Ipswich manager after quitting Sunderland before Christmas[LNB] Robson did it with an attractive side in an unattractive town and he let his football team do his talking. But Roy Keane - who abruptly left Sunderland this season - is different. He is Box Office. A manager and a man who says what he likes and likes what he says. And enjoys spending his board's money.[LNB]Talking football: Robson holds the UEFA Cup aloft in 1981[LNB]If he can once again find a bottomless pit of cash, Keane has proved he is one of the best qualified to spend his way into the top flight. Ipswich would have been encouraged by the way he took Sunderland from the foot of the Championship to the Barclays Premier League in less than a season, earning promotion in 2007.[LNB]If this time he can be persuaded to move Teresa and the kids away from the north west, the Tractor Boys could be very much to his taste.[LNB]Keane, the nearest thing the modern game has to his mentor and hero Brian Clough, is a traditionalist. When he first started playing football at Rockmount in Cork, terrorising team mates and opponents, Ipswich were one of the most successful teams in England. Keane, then a Tottenham fan, will remember those teams Robson built.[LNB]But he will need cash in the kitty to remould Jim Magilton's squad into Championship promotion contenders.[LNB]Financial backing was crucial to Keane's initial Sunderland success. Within days of arriving on Wearside, Keane had assembled a new squad.[LNB] Tractor Roy: Keane back in business after shock return to management at IpswichCharles Sale: Fergie snub won't turn off sponsorsAbout a Roy: From United hero to stepping down at Sunderland - and back again? The highs and lows of KeaneRoy Keane - the manager who liked to deal and his £80m transfer record Ipswich 3 Norwich 2: Penalty pain leaves Canaries teetering on the brink[LNB]Dwight Yorke may be the antithesis of the footballer Keane was at Manchester United, but he was his first spend his way into the top flight. Ipswich would have been encouraged by the way he took Sunderland from the foot of the Championship to the Barclays Premier League in less than a season, earning promotion in 2007.[LNB]If this time he can be persuaded to move Teresa and the kids away from the north west, the Tractor Boys could be very much to his taste.[LNB]Keane, the nearest thing the modern game has to his mentor and hero Brian Clough, is a traditionalist. When he first started playing football at Rockmount in Cork, terrorising team mates and opponents, Ipswich were one of the most successful teams in England.[LNB]Keane, then a Tottenham fan, will remember those teams Robson built. But he will need cash in the kitty to remould Jim Magilton's squad into Championship promotion contenders. Financial backing was crucial to Keane's initial Sunderland success.[LNB]Within days of arriving on Wearside, Keane had assembled a new squad. Dwight Yorke may be the antithesis of the footballer Keane was at Manchester United, but he was his first signing and exactly the experienced know-it-all the Sunderland dressingroom needed. [LNB]That Yorke turned his back on a cushy life in Australia speaks volumes for Keane's powers of persuasion and reputation. [LNB] Old pals act: Yorke and Keane hail a famous victory at the Stadio delle Alpi as United reach 1999's Champions League final [LNB]If anything, things went too well, too quickly. But, once back in the big time, Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn allowed Keane to spend big again, not least the funding of Britain's most expensive goalkeeper Craig Gordon who joined from Hearts for £9million. The jury is still out.[LNB]Always distant and aloof, even with those allegedly close to him, Keane became even more withdrawn in his final days at the club.[LNB]Even Quinn, whose relationship was mainly via text, struggled to keep tabs on the manager who would disappear for days on end and reappear at the training ground with his trusty dog.[LNB]When his extensive coaching staff offered opinions, they were usually ignored. His office was virtually out of bounds to his players. He had little sympathy for the modern player, a trait he picked up with Manchester United and was his downfall with Ireland.[LNB]But those traits meant he set incredible standards, the like of which Sunderland had never seen before. He may have scared his players into submission, but he was usually right.[LNB]He has a new opportunity to enhance his reputation with Ipswich and to add to the c.v. to make Manchester United take him seriously for the future. But this time he will need to see the job through. [LNB] Tractor Roy: Keane back in business after shock return to management at IpswichCharles Sale: Fergie snub won't turn off sponsorsAbout a Roy: From United hero to stepping down at Sunderland - and back again? The highs and lows of KeaneRoy Keane - the manager who liked to deal and his £80m transfer record Ipswich 3 Norwich 2: Penalty pain leaves Canaries teetering on the brink[LNB]
