Roy Keane snubbed Sir Alex Ferguson when naming the greatest coach he ever played under

Roy Keane overlooked Sir Alex Ferguson when asked to name the best coach he worked with during his career.

Keane spent 12 years playing under Ferguson at United, serving many as his captain and lifting seven Premier League titles in a glittering period.

In many ways the Irishman was almost a mirror of Ferguson on the pitch, leading United into battle and getting his messages across from the touchline.

However, the 53-year-old's time at United ended on a sour note in the middle of the 2005/06 season following on from an explosive MUTV interview leading to his contract being terminated by mutual consent.

Keane has been highly critical of Ferguson in various interviews and in his autobiographies, and when going through his 'Career Bests' with ITV Football, he did not mention him for the best coach.

With Ferguson more of a manager than a coach, Keane name dropped both Steve McClaren and Brian Kidd - two of the Scot's most successful assistants - ultimately opting for the latter.

Roy Keane named Brian Kidd as the best coach he has worked with. Image: Getty

"I really enjoyed working under Steve McClaren," Keane said.

"If I had to pick one coach, it would probably be Brian Kidd. When I first went to United, Kiddo was a good guy and really good with the players. He put on some good sessions and a really decent human being as well. Brian Kidd."

Roy Keane puts one manager ahead of Sir Alex Ferguson

Prior to signing to United for a fee of £3.75 million, Keane had a football education under another British footballing icon in Brian Clough.

Clough brought Keane to England when he signed him from Cobh Ramblers in 1990 and though he only spent three years under his tutelage, it was enough for him to view the late manager as the best he worked with.

In his book The Second Half, Keane compared the two greats and explained that only Clough had "genuine" warmth.

"I worked under two great managers and I put Brian Clough ahead of Alex Ferguson for a simple reason. What was the most important thing in my football career? Brian Clough signing me. That kick started everything," he wrote.

"Different managers, both brilliant. I think Clough’s warmth was genuine. I think with Sir Alex Ferguson it was pure business – everything is business. If he was being nice I would think: ‘This is business, this’.

"He was driven and ruthless. That lack of warmth was his strength. United was a much bigger club than Forest but his coldness made him successful.

"His message was the same. I was never once confused by one of his team talks or his tactics or his training. The message was always fresh. I must have heard him talk 500 times and I always thought: ‘Yeah, that was good’.

"I think that’s amazing. As a manager I would take Clough’s warmth and Ferguson’s ruthlessness and put them in the mix – but also add my own traits."