Spain are on the cusp of securing their place in the last-16 of the World Cup. They laboured to a 1-0 win over a spirited Iran side last night.
A draw against Morocco would be enough to send the Spanish through. Portugal are top of the group and will also make the next round if they can beat an Iran side who won their opening game.
The job their manager Carlos Queiroz has done was the topic of conversation during ITV’s coverage of the game on Tuesday night.
Former Republic of Ireland captain Roy Keane worked with him at United and clearly rates him highly as a coach even if the pair didn’t see eye to eye.
Roy Keane on Carlos Queiroz is next-level analysis. pic.twitter.com/UXU2VoI8Ux
— Ronan Mullen (@RonanReigns) June 20, 2018
“I found him really disrespectful towards me so we had a bit of a fall out.”
“He questioned my loyalty and I told him where to go. One of my big regrets is that I probably should have ripped his head off. But he's an excellent coach doing an excellent job.”
Keane didn’t offer insight into what may have led to the fractured relationship while appearing on TV, but an anecdote he shared in his book might explain why relations between the coach and captain turned sour.
On a pre-season trip to Portugal in 2006, Keane had been unhappy with the lack of variation to training drills. He raised his concerns with Queiroz who explained why the drills seemed tedious:
“No, Roy, we need repetition — that’s what we need. Repetition.”
“And I said, ‘Carlos, do you always make love to your wife in the same position?’
“And I think he went, ‘What — where is this going.’
“I said, ‘You change the position, don’t you? Sometimes you have to mix training up a little bit. That’s all I’m saying.”
