Keane ignores hype to focus on long-term goals

Nov 17 2008 The Journal

ROY Keane has branded the short-term ‘results now’ culture that has infiltrated the Premier League as lunacy – and praised Sunderland’s supporters and board for their patience and understanding during the club’s winless run, writes.

The Black Cats returned to winning ways at Ewood Park on Saturday with a priceless 2-1 victory that moved the team back into mid-table and eased some of the pressure that was beginning to build on Keane and his players.

Sunderland had been branded the latest ‘club in crisis’ after an admittedly worrying run of four straight defeats, with some mischievous reports before Saturday’s game even suggesting Keane was on the brink of quitting the club that had offered him his route into football management.

Those reports were without any foundation but for Keane the hype and speculation surrounding his own position and his club’s slump in form merely served to illustrate a worrying trend in modern football. “There’s always been a knee-jerk reaction over the years but I think at this moment in time it’s at a level that is crazy, absolutely crazy,” he said. “Trust me, Blackburn could have won the game just like we could have won the game

on Wednesday. We could have beaten Portsmouth last weekend without a shadow of a doubt. We could have lost today’s game and this would have been different.

“I think everything is over the top at this moment and everyone needs to just relax. People outside the clubs seem to overreact but within your club you’ve just got to stay focused on what you’re trying to do.”

While he is concerned at the effect that outside pressures are having on football clubs, Keane has been impressed at what he believes is a sea change in attitudes at the Stadium of Light.

Aside from a few grumbles of discontent after the recent defeats, Sunderland’s supporters and the board have remained steadfastly behind Keane and his long-term vision for the club.

“I wouldn’t say that’s always been the case for Sunderland – the fans are either on top of the world or very, very low. But there seems to be a better balance to the club, particularly over the last few weeks. It’s been everyone outside the club,” he said. “Niall (Quinn) and the people who bought the club are intelligent and they appreciate it but when you lose football matches there’s got to be an element of concern. That’s human nature but we’re all focused on trying to build a football club.

“Last year we finished 15th and in the history of the Premiership there has only ever been two clubs that have got promoted, stayed up and then improved their position. So I’m under no illusions that we were going to go from 15th to sixth or seventh just because we were another year in the Premiership. That’s crazy.

“It’s about keeping that balance and build a team and we’ve got lads coming back from injury so I was never panicking. I always thought that we’d be okay.”

Keane also moved to end the speculation over his own future, which had been called into question on Friday with reports that he had not boarded the team bus and was on the verge of resigning. Keane laughed off those reports – and dismissed the notion that not signing a contract extension was causing uncertainty.

“There is no uncertainty, I am in negotiations with the club and I am sure things will be sorted. As for the rumours I just find them funny,” he said.

“If I was going to answer rumours, we would be here all night. People put two and two together and come up with 10. It is just stupid.

“Last year I had it with players in nightclubs, players taking this, players saying this. It seems to happen in the North East quite a bit. There used to be talk about Newcastle players, now it is Sunderland players. There is no logic to it.”

BLACKBURN manager Paul Ince has told his players to “stand up and be counted” in the coming weeks after suddenly finding themselves in the relegation zone.

Ince was alarmed at the way his side collapsed to a 2-1 defeat against the Black Cats.

He said: “We just had a great opportunity after winning on Wednesday. I played a full strength side but the majority of them let me down. Samba was outstanding and Roque (Santa Cruz) was out of this world. The others have got to stand up and be counted.

“They have to realise they are in a dogfight and need to have that survival instinct about them. We did not have any leaders or characters.”