Roy Keane is no longer the bookies favourite to take the West Brom job after branding reports linking him to the job as 'absolute rubbish.'
The no-nonsense pundit was appearing on Sky Sports' Monday Night Football coverage of Aston Villa v Nottingham Forest when he made the comments. Although he admitted that he still has the bug to get back into management, the Manchester United legend played down suggestions that he is about to replace his former United teammate at The Hawthorne's.
Sean Dyche is now odds on to take over from Bruce with Ladbrokes having installed him as favourite at 3/1. Wigan boss Leam Richardson is second favourite at 7/2, while Keane has been pushed back to 9/2 along with former Sheffield United and Middlesbrough manager Chris Wilder.
"It’s bizarre,” said Keane when asked about the West Brom rumours. “Sometimes the bookies play silly games with people. I’ve been favourite for a few jobs over the last year or two and it was all nonsense.
"The same with speculation over the last 48 hours. Absolute rubbish.”
Aged 51, Keane has been out of management since he left Ipswich Town in 2011. Before that, the midfield hardman enjoyed a fruitful spell at Sunderland where he led the club to promotion to the Premier League before leaving the club in late 2008.
Many clubs such as Hibernian and Sunderland have been linked to the Corkman in his eleven-year absence from management, yet none have enticed Keane into taking charge.
Spells as assistant manager to Martin O'Neill at Ireland and Nottingham Forest, along with a brief stint as Paul Lambert's number two at Aston Villa are the closest the Premier League great has come to being back in the hot seat.
"I want to keep that door open,” he said when asked whether he still has ambitions to be a manager.
"When I do a lot of the media stuff, that can leave me unfulfilled. I still feel I have something to offer as a manager. That’s the bottom line. I think I could still be a good manager.
"You feel you can go back and fix a club. Everyone who goes into the job feels they can do that.
"I have a good life and enjoy what I can do, but there is something in the pit of my stomach that makes me feel like I want to go back into it.
"If something happens great. If not, then life goes on.”
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