Van Gaal favours Keane as United assistant

The early front-runner for the Manchester United job, Louis Van Gaal, is reported by the Irish Examiner to want former United captain Roy Keane as his assistant manager.

The early front-runner for the Manchester United job, Louis Van Gaal, is reported by the Irish Examiner to want former United captain Roy Keane as his assistant manager.

The Holland coach emerged as the favourite to succeed David Moyes, whose 10-month reign came to an end on Tuesday when he was fired following a meeting with vice-chairman Ed Woodward at Carrington.

The 62-year-old Van Gaal wants to manage in England only if he has an assistant that is familiar with the environment.

Ryan Giggs was appointed as interim manager yesterday, but it appears that Van Gaal wants someone with some managerial experience as his no.2.

Keane's appointment may spell bad news for the FAI, but Republic of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill has already acknowledged the risk of losing him to a club.

The FAI last night refused to comment on Keane’s possible departure.

Keane was vociferous in his condemnation of the United players last night on ITV1, saying: "I think some of the players at Manchester United should be ashamed of themselves.

"I think they have really let him (Moyes) down. I think it is a shame because I think he should have been given more time."

Each member of the Manchester United board, including Sir Alex Ferguson, will be asked for their views on who should replace Moyes in the coming days.

And whoever takes over from the Scot will be given significant funds to rebuild the squad, sources said.

It is understood the United board first discussed the possibility of getting rid of Moyes on Sunday night following the team’s 11th defeat of the season at Everton.

On Monday the board, which includes Ferguson and Sir Bobby Charlton, decided Moyes should be sacked and he was summoned to the AON Training Complex the following morning to be dismissed.

Although Ferguson was responsible for appointing Moyes, he will play a part in choosing his compatriot’s successor, although this time he will not be the sole man responsible.

However, Keane absolved Ferguson of blame for choosing Moyes as his successor.

He said: “I wouldn’t necessarily say it was his (Ferguson’s) pick, obviously he put his (Moyes) name forward but the club had to make the decision. You can’t be critical of Alex Ferguson.

“For David Moyes to be seventh in the league is disappointing and he takes responsibility for that. But you still need good people around you to help you in any way they can.

“I don’t think he’s had that support, particularly from the players. I think he should have got a bit more time — definitely.”

United are looking to appoint an experienced manager who has a history of signing top-class players and managing them.

For that reason, the club are known to be interested in Van Gaal, who has won titles in Spain and Germany. The 62-year-old also won the Champions League with Ajax in 1995.

The Dutchman has made it clear he wants to move to England when his contract expires at the end of the World Cup.

Another potential candidate, according to reports, is Carlo Ancelotti, whose position at Real Madrid could be in jeopardy if the Italian fails to win either the Spanish league or the Champions League.

The United board will back their new manager in the transfer market, with the £150million kitty promised to Moyes still available.

Giggs will take care of the team “until a permanent appointment can be made,” United said.

It is understood Giggs will not be considered as a full-time replacement, but they hope United’s most-decorated player will become part of the new manager’s backroom staff.

For the final four games of the season, Giggs will be assisted by Nicky Butt, Phil Neville and Chris Woods – the latter two keeping their jobs despite being brought in by Moyes.

Steve Round and Jimmy Lumsden were also brought in by the Scot but they have been fired.

Moyes can have no qualms about his dismissal. This time last year United won the title with four games to spare. Now they sit 23 points below the summit in seventh place.

One United source said the board started worrying about Moyes’ capabilities during the 2-0 defeat to Olympiacos.

“The players didn’t look up for it,” the source said. Once more “lacklustre” performances followed, the source added, Moyes had to go.

Fans and shareholders widely backed Moyes’ dismissal, and yesterday evening the club’s share price on the New York Stock Exchange climbed sharply to its highest point since Ferguson’s retirement last May.

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