The two men famously fell out before the start of the World Cup with Keane being ordered home.

Keane is currently recovering from a hip operation and Ferguson is adamant that the international debate should remain on the back burner.

“I think for Roy’s sake, the least he says about it the better because it is going to be another agenda for everyone in Ireland,” the Old Trafford boss told manutd.com.

“They will be agog with stories about who is taking over and Keane coming back.

“At the moment he is not even back for us and that is the first step.”

Keane has echoed those thoughts by claiming that first he must concentrate on a return to action for “the people who pay my wages”.