Keane slams ‘selfish’ Man Utd man who ‘doesn’t care’ after ‘letting down’ Ten Hag
Manchester United legend Roy Keane has criticised Bruno Fernandes for his role in Erik ten Hag being sacked.
Ten Hag lost his job last Monday and has been replaced by Ruben Amorim, who leaves Sporting Lisbon after four years.
The 39-year-old will take charge on November 11, meaning assistant coach Ruud van Nistelrooy will be the man in the dugout for three domestic matches.
He oversaw a convincing 5-2 victory over Leicester City in the Carabao Cup before Sunday’s 1-1 draw at home to Chelsea.
The Red Devils’ last match before the international break and Amorim’s arrival is against Leicester in the Premier League next weekend.
The decision to sack Ten Hag is hard to dispute but the timing is not. He was handed a 12-month contract extension in the summer after the club’s worst finish in Premier League history and should have been replaced then, not two months into the season.
Speaking after Sunday’s draw against Chelsea, Man Utd captain Fernandes revealed he apologised to Ten Hag for his subpar performances this season.
“When you see a manager go you have to look at the mirror first,” the Portuguese midfielder said after scoring his side’s goal in the 1-1 draw.
“I spoke with Erik ten Hag and I told him I apologise and I feel disappointed I couldn’t do more for him. We should’ve done better.
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“I wasn’t scoring goals and I felt responsibility as I’m normally a player with a lot of goals and assists. The main thing is he’s aware of that.
“Every week is challenging, it doesn’t matter if you win or lose. It’s a different week because we know Erik is gone.
“It’s not good for anyone at the club when a manager goes because it means that the positions where the team is is not the best, the results are not the best. We are all disappointed by that, you always have to take a little bit of the blame on yourself.”
Former Man Utd captain Keane did not feel the affection of Fernandes’ comments, insisting it is all “too little, too late”.
The Red Devils legend believes Fernandes did not show enough leadership when the going got tough under Ten Hag and is not convinced he actually cares that the Dutchman has left.
“These are always awkward interviews for players but I wouldn’t have much time and patience for the player to say, ‘Listen, sorry, we let you down’. Too little, too late,” Keane told Sky Sports.
“We’ll judge what you’re doing on the football pitch. I don’t think Bruno has done enough in a lot of the games already. He didn’t show that leadership. So it would be interesting to hear what Ten Hag has to say about it. But you also have to move on.
“A lot of players don’t care that much when a manager goes. They just focus on the next manager and get ready, look after themselves.
“Players can be selfish, we know that, but I don’t think Bruno done enough as a captain of Man United over the last year or two to help the manager out. Far from it.
“The proof’s there with all the results. It’s not just on Bruno, of course, but I don’t think he showed enough leadership skills when the going’s got tough with some of the performances.
“I don’t think Bruno should be too proud of himself, of what’s happened to the manager of the last week or two. I think the players let the manager down ultimately.”
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