Trapattoni era has Keane's approval

ROY KEANE had some harsh words for certain football people yesterday but they were balanced by appreciation for Giovanni Trapattoni and how the Ireland team have started their World Cup qualifying group this week.

"I think Ireland have got a chance, a good chance," Keane said of qualification hopes.

With Sunderland midfielder Liam Miller coming on briefly as a substitute in the game in Germany against Georgia, Keane was asked about the continued omission of Andy Reid, who has been captain at Sunderland in the absence of Dean Whitehead but was an unused Irish replacement against Georgia and Montenegro.

"That's up to Mr Trapattoni," Keane said of Reid. "He obviously got two good results, he picks the team, it's none of my business. A lot of the players weren't involved, Liam Miller, Murph [Daryl Murphy] Marton Fulop wasn't involved [for Hungary] but they still travel, they still go through the scenario. Mr Trapattoni has gone down a certain route and with his CV, I'm not going to question him."

Trapattoni's decision to not watch a Premier League game involving any Irish players this season did not ruffle Keane either.

"Everyone is different," he said of the 69-year-old Italian, "and if he keeps getting the results that he has, then . . . sometimes you can watch too many games.

"I was impressed with the results and the way they performed. I thought Georgia were awful but the fact is Ireland have played poor teams away before, teams I thought were poor anyway, and not got the result. So they got the balance right with that.

"A draw away from home, you take that every time because Ireland will be good at home. You look at the players Ireland have and they're good players. You look at the experience behind them, a good manager, and they've got big home games coming up. I think Ireland have got a chance, a good chance."

When discussing Irish international matters, Keane's tone was considerably less animated than when he was asked about Dwight Yorke, who played for Trinidad and Tobago last Saturday, and the TT representative, Jack Warner, who also is vice-president of Fifa. Warner attacked Keane this week for being "callous".

Keane did not want 36-year-old Yorke to play two games in five days, particularly as Yorke has not played for Sunderland this season since breaking a cheekbone in a summer friendly in Portugal. Keane has been annoyed further that Warner wrote a letter to Sunderland on Fifa-headed paper and that it was leaked to the media.

"They go on about these small countries," Keane said of TT and Warner, "he's probably a small man, got small-man syndrome, thinks the world's against him. And why is he writing letters on Fifa-headed paper? If he's vice-president, and remember he's vice, vice-president, not president yet, God help us.

"The man's a clown. He sent me a letter, which he was quite happy to give to the media. I spoke to him on Wednesday, I spoke to him and told him what I thought of him and where I think he should go. He's writing these letters and it's under Fifa's heading just to impress everybody."

With Kenwyne Jones, whose current knee injury came in a Trinidad friendly, Carlos Edwards and Yorke at Sunderland, Wearside has established TT ties, but Keane said this episode would make him think again about signing a player from there.

Yorke, who will be 37 in November, was due to meet Keane yesterday.

"He's a clown as well," Keane said, adding he would not have offered Yorke a one-year extension had he known he would come out of international retirement. "You have to prioritise at his age."

Jack Warner later responded to Keane's criticism with a second letter attacking the Sunderland manager - and making a dig about his own conduct in walking out on the Republic of Ireland before the 2002 World Cup.

The letter, a copy of which was released to PA Sport, says: "The disrespectful tone of your reported comments further demonstrates the total disrespect that you and others of your ilk have generally for players and officials from 'small' countries . . .

"I chose to respond on a Fifa letter-head because that is a privilege afforded me owing to my said status and the fact that your callousness showed utter disregard for Fifa's regulations re the release of players for international duty.

"Regrettably, but not surprisingly, you did not grasp the message.

"In closing, may I remind you that a player's greatest honour is to represent his country in spite of the fact that you chose to walk away from yours during the 2002 Korea/Japan World Cup after publicly abusing your manager . . . indictment that you will no doubt be proud of up to today. Poor Sunderland."