After coming onto the scene as assistant manager, the party line was that he was second fiddle, there to learn and do as he was told from the top dog Martin O Neill.
Fair enough, fast forward a few months and Roy is now at the centre of everything once more. And admit it, you just love it.
Like the kid who breaks that expensive vase to get attention, Roy’s autobiography, thrilling as it was, is the root of all this furore.
It was the autobiography that the shady fan with history with Keanes family asked to be signed at the team hotel. Keane politely told him to fuck off and called the Gardai – the media got wind of it – and now Keane is front and center in every press conference while O Neill collects the cones and footballs on the training pitch.
“Who the hell do you think you are? I’ve got to answer to you?” He seethed to an incontinent journalist. “I answer to the FAI and Martin, and if we don’t get the results, I’ll be gone and you won’t lose a minute’s sleep, so don’t worry about distractions…You are the ones who write about distractions.”
Don’t worry though, this all part of the master plan. There was no need for distractions during the 1-1 victory in Gelsenkirchen, or thrashing Gibraltars footballing collective 7-0 or whatever it was. But after a less than inspiring display against Scotland that gave Ireland their first blip in qualifying, well, perhaps we’re now seeing Keano doing what he’s supposed to do. Act the maggot, for the good of his country.