The Wolverhampton Wanderers defender says the atmosphere in the Irish camp is much better without the Reds duo.
Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Matt Doherty has issued a scathing assessment of Nottingham Forest management duo Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane by suggesting things within the Republic of Ireland setup are better now.
O’Neill ended his five-year spell as ROI boss last November before taking over at the Championship side in January after Aitor Karanka’s departure from the City Ground, while Keane, who worked with the 66-year-old as his assistant manager, linked up with him once again weeks later.
On the day that the duo left the Irish hotseat, Doherty spoke out about squad dissatisfaction with match preparation and cast doubt on the value of the assistant’s input, before receiving an angry telephone rebuke by O’Neill, as reported by the Irish Independent.
Although the Wolves man suggested that he regretted the timing of the comments, he spoke out about how the Eire camp is doing now under returning manager Mick McCarthy, with internationals coming up away at Gibraltar and back home against Georgia.
“The atmosphere is definitely different. Not just around the players but around the whole place,” Doherty is quoted by the Irish Independent as saying. “Everyone seems to be just a bit happier and enjoying it more. Training is a bit more fun. It’s a better atmosphere.”
Commenting about the tension, he added why that may have been: “Just results and maybe people not enjoying training as much as they should do and it is just a different type of management personality. It is a lot more friendly and people are enjoying it more. Hopefully that will show in the next two games.”
O’Neill has overseen 11 games at Forest so far, having picked up four wins and three draws – including in their last game before the international break, against Ipswich Town – whilst falling to four defeats (Transfermarkt).
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