Keane dismisses Fernandes' apology to sacked Ten Hag as 'too little, too late'

Roy Keane flatly rejected Bruno Fernandes’ apology to sacked Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag, telling Sky Sports the gesture amounted to “too little, too late” from a captain he felt had not done enough to protect his manager’s position.

Fernandes, 32, confirmed he had spoken to Ten Hag personally after the Dutchman was relieved of his duties at Old Trafford, saying he apologised “if there was something I could’ve done better for him” and that he felt “really disappointed” at his departure. The Portuguese midfielder added that Ten Hag had told him he always felt Fernandes gave everything and tried to help in any way possible.

Keane was unmoved. “Listen, these are always awkward interviews but I wouldn’t have much time and patience for a player to say, ‘Listen, sorry we’ve let you down’,” the United legend said. “Too little, too late. You’re judged by what you do on the football pitch and I don’t think Bruno has done enough in a lot of the games where he didn’t show that leadership.”

The former United captain went further, placing a significant share of the blame for Ten Hag’s dismissal squarely on Fernandes’ shoulders. “I don’t think Bruno has done enough as a captain of Man United over the last year to help the manager out. Far from it. The proof’s there with all the results,” Keane said. “I don’t think he showed enough leadership skills when the going got tough. I don’t think Bruno should be too proud of himself of what’s happened to the Man United manager.”

Keane was careful to spread the criticism across the entire squad, acknowledging the collective failure behind Ten Hag’s exit. “Not just on to Bruno, of course,” he added. “I think the players let the manager down ultimately.”

The remarks have taken on fresh relevance following United’s 4-1 Champions League defeat at Como on Wednesday — a result that left the club without a win in seven games and intensified scrutiny on current manager Michael Carrick. Fernandes drew further attention after publicly questioning Carrick’s tactical approach in the wake of that loss, placing the captain once again at the centre of a managerial crisis at Old Trafford.