Former Blue Pablo Couñago has hit back at his one-time boss Roy Keane for his comments in his new book, The Second Half. Keane was highly critical of the 35-year-old Spaniard in the chapter about his time with the Blues, branding the striker “dead lazy” and revealing that he almost attacked him after a game.

Couñago, who is currently playing for his ex-Town team-mate Shefki Kuqi’s side FC Honka in Finland, sent TWTD a message to pass on to Blues supporters.

The love and respect I feel for ITFC and its fans is something he [Roy Keane] will never feel.

With my best wishes to the ITFC family!

Coincidentally, Pablo spoke to TWTD last week for a forthcoming Ex-File. Asked about Keane he said: "When you are a player and go into management it changes a lot.

“I didn’t know Roy Keane as a player, obviously I knew what he did as a player, but as a manager I think he is the kind of person that thought everyone had to play hard and run, and just do as much as you can.

"I think in football that is important but when you are running like the other team and fighting like the other team the one that is going to win is the one who is cleverer with and without the ball.

"He is the kind of person who thinks he knows everything and he was never going to understand anything about what other people told him, about how we could improve another way.

“When such difficult characters go into management you have to do whatever they say or life is going to be difficult.

“He won everything as a player but when he tried to do it as manager there was nothing, he will have a chance to be a manager in the future because of what he did as a player, but not as a manager.

“After the Ipswich job he didn’t get another job for a while because the other clubs start to know what you are like, and I don’t think he will get success in football as manager because he’s not that kind of character. He’s better as an assistant because he doesn’t have to do anything and he can be kept to one side.

"When you are in football you have to do as much as possible and I always tried to do as much as I could but for me people that don’t have respect in football or have respect for you, you don’t mind if they are bigger than you or smaller than you.

"Ipswich was like a big family and there was a good atmosphere around the training ground and he changed that. There wasn’t that feeling, a good atmosphere to work in, a good atmosphere of happiness.

“I think back on the time I spent with him at the training ground, it looks sad, it looks really different and he changed things and they didn’t work.”

Couñago was sent on loan to Crystal Palace, then managed by his former Blues boss George Burley, in August 2010.

“It was a difficult moment for me because [Keane] was trying to get me out of the club,” he recalled.

“I don’t know if it was because he didn’t want me to have that good relationship with the fans, because he said to me he never understood the relationship I had with the fans, why they sang my name, why they loved me. I think it annoyed him.

"It was a big surprise for me, how it looked like he was jealous of that. For me it was like ‘what’s going on here?’, someone like Roy Keane, one of the biggest names in Manchester United history, and now he is getting annoyed because the people like me.

"In that time he was saying so many things about me, that I was training badly, that I wasn’t professional and I never said anything about that because I have respect for football. But he said things about me as a player that I didn’t like, but I had to understand them because he was the manager.

"When I heard him saying things like I wasn’t training properly and I wasn’t professional, that hurt me a lot because it wasn’t true. But I didn’t say anything bad because I’m not that kind of person, I always felt frustration because it was difficult for me.

“He was the kind of person who could have everything and was never going to be happy. They look so big and strong standing there but really they are weaker than anyone.”

Photo: Action Images

kaiserblue added 18:57 - Oct 8 Not so much Keano but more Oh NO!!!! Blaming the players for his poor management means he will make more as a novelist than a manager in the future Muy Bien Pablo :-)
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Dozzells_Bobblehat added 19:01 - Oct 8 Blueboy - is it tit fir tat? Surely Pablo has the right to respond?
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Whitecaps_Fan added 19:03 - Oct 8 I never got to see Pablo much having emigrated in 2000, but I have a huge amount of respect for him. Ole Ole Ole Pablo
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bluemikey100 added 19:13 - Oct 8 keane can only be a part time international manager now and lamberts yes man lol do as yer told keane
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grumpyoldman added 19:18 - Oct 8 Why did Pablo get loaned out under Burley, rumour was on first day back at training he was beaten in a long distance run by Willie Donachie, he of the two bad knees and could not really run well. Yes Pablo scored some great goals, yes he played some lovely through balls, but he was a luxury we could not afford to have in the team as he did little else apart from pose in most games. Legend never, did not do enough, score enough or set up enough goals to be a legend

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tractorboybig added 19:22 - Oct 8 grumpyoldman A luxury we could not afford??????? The last class player this club had. not with crawford phillips or marnier but still up there.
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bluecrazycomfort added 19:48 - Oct 8 well said asamink hopefully no one buys Keane's crap book. I loved Pablo, such a clever player who I believe had he had a similar minded striker along side of him we would have had an unstoppable strike force, best of luck Pablo
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senduntd added 20:04 - Oct 8 Cracking article and brilliant comments. congratulations to all
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jpring89 added 20:15 - Oct 8 i heart pablo
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essextractorboy93 added 20:56 - Oct 8 Good on Pablo telling Roy what he thinks of him. Keane has bullied people at all the clubs he has been at and took our club backwards, Jewell tried to fix it and is a top bloke but just wasn't a good enough manager but now with Mick I think we are definitely going in the right direction. Pablo you legend!
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Lower_North added 21:12 - Oct 8 Love you boy...
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PonsonbyBlue added 22:09 - Oct 8 As a writer and editor for nearly 20 years, I just want to give a shout out to Phil and TWTD. This story has garnered an international response - here's a Spanish website that actually links to the article. http://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia/deportes/2014/10/08/pablo-counago-llama-cob The fact that Pablo responded only to TWTD speaks volumes of this fantastic website. I live in Auckland and log-in at least twice a day to get my Ipswich fix. It's by far and away the ONLY source of info for me and I sincerely hope your 'clicks' are going through the roof, Phil. You are doing a wonderful job and this recognition in journalistic terms (ie, when your exclusive story goes viral) is well deserved - and should lead to awards from the likes of 4-4-2 magazine. Good luck and keep up the great work. COYB

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terrakard added 23:01 - Oct 8 totally agree with what Pablo said and under better management we would have got even more out of this legend, just a pity he was not under Mick and TC, they would have got the best out of him. I have his signed shirt as pride of place in my house you will always be a legend for me Pablo
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PhilTWTD added 23:40 - Oct 8 PonsonbyBlue Many thanks for kind words and link to the Galicia website, think that's Pablo's local paper back home. Worth pointing out it was Blair Ferguson who got this particular scoop rather than me.
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bingboast added 23:46 - Oct 8 Pablo such a modest player, strange how he never made it at the top level as RK did. Who is really is the villain here ?
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jeffisbent added 03:24 - Oct 9 I'm no Keane fan, but I seem to recall Royle being shocked at Pablo's lack of fitness/condition coming in for pre-season training one year. Maybe there were some issues over his professionalism in his time with us.
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OldClactonBlue added 08:28 - Oct 9 62WasBest and Bergholtblue. I agree, I don't think Pablo would find favour with McCarthy. In my opinion that's why MM is not a great manager. A million times better than Keane though. Might be worth asking MM what he thought of Pablo, he must have seen plenty of him as a player!
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SouperJim added 10:47 - Oct 9 I think there is probably a degree of truth from both sides here, however Pablo has given me some of my greatest highs in my time supporting Town. An thrilling player to watch, passionate about the game and this great club and one that had and continues to have a great rapport with the fans. Roy Keane on the other hand brought miserable football and only contempt for us supporters, he wouldn't even walk round the pitch at the end of the season and applaud our support for him and his team, which was unwavering in the face of utterly turgid football. A miserable hypocrite who is so often critical of others, while making countless errors himself. Being able to reflect on your mistakes doesn't make it any better Roy, you should learn to think before you open your giant gob yet again. Ole ole ole Pablo! Thank you for all the moments of sheer joy, you will always be loved at Portman Road.

2

AinsleyBlue added 12:28 - Oct 9 The Guardian have gone heavy on this story too, it's currently a lead story in their Sports section - http://gu.com/p/429py Bit cheeky of them not to have doffed their cap to TWTD or Blair though. outstanding statement from Pablo, needless to say, a righteous ripost to Mr Keane's savagery.
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LordMamu added 13:05 - Oct 9 Well said, Pablo. The Dark Lord turned Portman Road into Mordor. It makes me shudder to remember.
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cyprustractorboy added 13:32 - Oct 9 Pablo is another town legend we love him and that idiot Keane is nothing but a thug a foul mouthed one at that. Pablo is always welcome at Itfc and will be thought of and loved by the blue army for all our history as are other legends have been and continue to be. Ole ole ole ole Pablo Pablo
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Lombokblue added 14:29 - Oct 9 Class from Pablo. Keane didn't rate Pablo but he did rate Tamas Priskin, 1.7m, 5 goals, released from contract.
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Fat_Boy_Tim added 15:52 - Oct 9 Just went out of my way to go to Waterstone's and hide RK's book behind Stephen Frýs memoires!
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Pip50 added 19:14 - Oct 9 Trouble is he was right. Pablo was lazy. Read Gary Ablett's book before you condemn.
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PonsonbyBlue added 20:21 - Oct 9 Ainsley Blue, TWTD is mentioned in the third paragraph of the story - great recognition.
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