Roy Keane seems to have intensified his ongoing conflict with Bruno Fernandes, as evidenced by a mysterious post on social media.
The former Manchester United midfielder has consistently been a vocal critic of Fernandes, frequently voicing dissatisfaction with the Portuguese player’s leadership qualities, demeanor, and non-verbal cues on the field.
Earlier this week, tensions escalated when Fernandes labeled Keane a “liar” and disclosed that he had attempted to obtain Keane’s contact information to address what he saw as unfounded criticism.
The controversy originated when Fernandes critiqued his own decision-making against Nottingham Forest on May 17, admitting that he sometimes opted to shoot rather than pass. Keane, however, misinterpreted this as Fernandes admitting to prioritizing assists over effective gameplay.
Fernandes’ strong reaction prompted a response from Keane, who later that day responded with an intriguing post on social media.
Roy Keane ramped up his spat with Bruno Fernandes by appearing to call him a ‘donkey’
Fernandes recorded 21 assists for Man United this season, setting a Premier League record
On Instagram, Keane posted an image showing a donkey apparently braying with two lions looming in the background, a move that many interpreted as a cryptic retort to Fernandes’ comments.
It was combined with a caption that read: ‘Too much attention makes a donkey think he’s a lion,’ in what seemed to be a dig at Fernandes, who he had labelled as the ‘donkey’.
Speaking earlier in the day, Fernandes had expressed his frustration at Keane’s repeated pot shots.
‘I’ve always said I don’t mind criticism,’ he told The Diary of a CEO podcast. ‘I always take criticism from everyone and anyone and never reply to anyone whatsoever. People have an opinion, they think it’s good, bad or whatever.
‘What I don’t like is when people lie about things, and in this case, what you said about Roy Keane, basically, what he said is a lie. Luckily for me everything is on record, imagine if it wasn’t, then people will think Bruno is always the guy trying to go for the assist.
‘My number creations is always the same. It’s not that I’ve been trying to reach the assists now, no, I’ve been creating chances since I came to the Premier League. My type of play hasn’t changed. Roy has seen the same Bruno.
‘I’ve always showed a lot of respect for Roy Keane and for everything he’s done for the club and everything he’s always said. I’ve never said something wrong.’
Fernandes continued: ‘I even asked Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] his number to text him to have a word with him, to say “I don’t mind the criticism, I don’t like when people lie about the things that I say,” because this goes a little bit over the top of the things I think are acceptable.
‘I accept criticism. I accept he can say things I don’t like. That improves me. What I don’t like is that people make their own words on what I say. It’s not true. He can criticise me, kill me, say that I’m not good enough, that I’m not a good captain, not a good player for the club, whatever, it’s okay, I don’t mind.
‘It’s his opinion, I don’t like it, I’d prefer Roy Keane to give me some praise sometimes because I’ve achieved something not many players achieve.’
Keane was labelled as a ‘liar’ after he misinterpreted a Fernandes interview and thought he was aiming for a personal assists record over the good of the team
Fernandes had taken umbrage with that accusation from Keane and hit back earlier on Monday
Fernandes set up Patrick Dorgu’s opening goal against Brighton on Sunday to bag his 21st assist of the season and surpass Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne, who in their best campaigns had managed 20.
According to Squawka, the 31-year-old created a total of 136 chances throughout the season. The second-best, far away in the rearview mirror, was Dominik Szoboszlai on 78.
Meanwhile, Daily Mail Sport understands that United have started talks to keep Fernandes at the club amid interest from European and Saudi Arabian sides, who also made a move for him last summer.
Fernandes is only under contract until next year and has a £57million release clause, although the Red Devils do have the option to extend his deal by a further year and are desperate for him to stay.
