Micah Richards makes Sunderland joke after friend Roy Keane is linked with head coach return

Lee Johnson was sacked on Sunday evening following a 6-0 thrashing away to Bolton Wanderers in League One.

And Sunderland are reportedly planning to interview former boss Roy Keane for their vacant head coach position.

Keane has spoken about his desire to return to the dugout, but last managed at Ipswich in 2011.

The former Manchester United midfielder, 50, led Sunderland to promotion from the Championship in 2007 and is a popular figure on Wearside.

Indeed, Keane is now the favourite with the bookies to be appointed by Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus.

Keane, of course, is well-known these days for his role as a pundit with Sky Sports and ITV.

Over the course of his punditry career, the ex-Celtic midfielder has developed a reputation for no-nonsense analysis and has also struck up an unlikely friendship with former Manchester City and England defender Micah Richards.

Following the links between Sunderland and Keane surfacing, Twitter account ODDSbible tweeted a picture of Keane showing the short 1/1 odds of him taking the job at the League One outfit.

Tagging the post, it read: “Wonder if he’ll get @MicahRichards in as his assistant.”

The former Manchester City defender replied with a reference to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, saying: “Here we go @FabrizioRomano I have my stuff packed.”

Grant McCann and Neil Warnock remain close to Keane in the betting with the bookies also offering odds on Jonathan Woodgate, Sam Allardyce and Gus Poyet.

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