Roy Keane Leaves Sunderland

By: Taylor Rockwell | December 4th, 2008

So, I went to the Sunderland section of TheOffside.com to read about this, but it doesn’t look like anything is going to be up there any time soon. Anyway, the Sunderland AFC website is confirming that Roy Keane has left the club today.

Sunderland released a brief statement on their webpage, noting, “After 2 ¼ years at the helm, Roy Keane has parted company with Sunderland AFC after both parties reached an amicable agreement… Roy deserves huge respect for his contribution and the manner in which he guided the Club from the depths of The Championship back to the Premier League. His winning mentality and singled mindedness were just what this Club needed when Drumaville took over shortly before his arrival.

Roy’s decision to stand aside and allow someone else to take charge of the next chapter sums up his desire to always do what is best for the Club. Even in his departure he has been more concerned for the welfare of the players and his staff than himself. The Board has reluctantly accepted his decision and wish him and his family well for the future.“

The Irishman was appointed manager of the northeastern club during their year in the Coca-Cola Championship three seasons ago. He took the team from the relegation zone to promotion in roughly half a season, and was heralded as the manager that could do no wrong.

However, after spending over £80 million in less than two seasons in the top flight, Kenae failed to jump start the success many pundits expected. Indeed, summer signings such as Anton Ferdinand, Pascal Chimbonda and El-Hadji Diouf have largely failed to deliver.

Indeed, after suffering five defeats in the last last six EPL games (including a 4-1 slaughter from lowly Bolton), Keane publicly began to question whether he was the right man for the job. In an interview following the shambolic defeat to Bolton, he stated, “I ask myself every single day if I am the right man for Sunderland. I asked myself this morning and I said that I was. Tomorrow morning if the answer’s no we will have to look at it.” Apparently, some time today the answer changed from yes to no, and a decision was made rather quickly.

So what does this mean for Keane’s future as a manager? Only a few months ago, he was on the shortlist of individuals being considered as replacements for Sir Alex Ferguson. Now he could shoulder a considerable amount of the blame if the Black Cats once again find themselves in the Championship season. So where does he go from here? Is it possible that we’ve seen the last of the fiery Irishman? Doubtful. But Keane has always been one to acknowledge his own shortcomings, and it wouldn’t be that big of a surprise if this “defeat” stuck with him for a good long while.