Roy Keane has built a punditry career on his no-nonsense criticism of footballers.
As a former Manchester United captain and midfielder himself, Keane has never been shy when it comes to picking apart United's current crop of midfielders. In the studio, just like on the pitch, Keane has not held back.
With that in mind, here's exactly what he thinks about United's midfielders.
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Fred
Back in 2021, Keane was furious with Fred's performance at Wolverhampton Wanderers. He told his Sky Sports colleagues: "Sometimes I think if you’re going to play in midfield for a big club, you’ve got to hang your hat on something to say 'well he’s brilliant at going forward' or 'he’s brilliant defensively' or 'he’s got a goal in him' or 'he’s great at'… I don’t see any of them in Fred, any of them."
However, following Fred's improving displays for the club, Keane eventually made a surprising U-turn. Speaking after United beat Leeds, a game in which Fred scored in, the former United captain joked on Sky Sports: "Fred, to be fair, he's improved over the last couple of months.
"Fred's been criticised, yeah, by Robbie [Keane]. He's added a couple of goals and assists - about time for him."
Scott McTominay
Scott McTominay, along with Fred, has been subjected to a lot of criticism from Keane. The ex-United captain once claimed his former club 'would not win any trophies with Fred and McTominay in the middle'.
"People talk about Fred and McTominay in midfield, they’ve had their chance, we’ve seen them," he said on Sky Sports in 2020.
"I don’t think they’re bad players, but they won’t get United back to winning league titles. Tim [Cahill, fellow pundit on Sky] makes a point there about Man United having great players, I don’t see it, I don’t see the great players. If you think Fred and McTominay in midfield will get Man United back to the heights of winning titles, then you’re living in cuckoo land."
Nemanja Matic
After letting a 2-0 lead slip at Aston Villa back in January, Nemanja Matic's idol, Keane, was less than impressed with his defensive capabilities. "In any team, when you’re playing in a team, you’re working with different lads who have got different strengths and weaknesses," Keane explained on Sky Sports.
"We know what Bruno’s [Fernandes'] are, there are parts of the game he needs to improve on. But there is other lads in the team, Fred and Matic, to do that [defensive] side of the game but they didn’t do it well enough."
Bruno Fernandes
Out of all of the United midfield options, Fernandes appears to be a player that Keane rates. His two goals against Villa in that game caught Keane's eye but that didn't stop him from pointing out where he needs to improve.
He explained to Sky Sports: "I think if you're playing in the team and you score two goals you have got to be pleased. There is other parts to his game that he has got to improve on, particularly when he was talking about his leadership, but I think he has got to be happy with his performance.
"He got two good goals. I liked his goals, his composure, his decision-making and I liked a lot of other things about his game.
"We know he is a goal-threat and has got plenty of assists, which is important when you're a goalscorer. We can analyse what players can't do, but he does a lot more good than negative stuff."
Paul Pogba
Keane clearly rates Pogba as a player but in the past, he has not held back in his criticism of the Frenchman. He told ITV Sport after United were beaten by Middlesbrough in the FA Cup : "How many times do you have to say it about Pogba? He is an outstanding talent, no doubt about it.
"He's got the CV and the trophies to back it up, but in his time at United, I don't think he's been consistent enough. It is a big few months ahead for him from a selfish point of view if he's looking at moving, or could he possibly be staying at Man United? We don't know with the manager, a talented boy but hasn't done enough at Man United, he hasn't been consistent enough."
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