Keane: I'm lucky to still be in a job

Sunderland boss Roy Keane launched a withering attack on his side and warned he is ready to discard several players in a huge summer overhaul.

The Black Cats arrived at the Reebok Stadium on Saturday safe from relegation and were second-best throughout to a Bolton side fighting desperately for their lives, who came away with a 2-0 victory.

Afterwards Keane renewed his calls for a massive transfer kitty to bring in new players and vowed to wield the axe in the coming days on members of his squad he feels have consistently failed to take their opportunities.

The Manchester United legend even went so far as to say he is fortunate not to have been shown the door himself.

"We've lost 22 games this season and people keep telling me we've had a good season - but I'm lucky to still be in a job," said Keane. You learn a hell of a lot about your players all the time and this match just confirmed what I'm thinking anyway. People say to me that we achieved our goal last week, but do we keep living in last week? Every game is an opportunity to impress me, but there will be changes in the summer because I'm saying the same thing week in, week out. I'm fed up of saying it and really bored with myself now at this stage - really, really bored."

Keane will throw out the players he feels are not up to the job after a superb strike from El-Hadji Diouf and an own-goal from Daryl Murphy handed Bolton victory.

Keane continued: "Gordon Strachan and one or two other managers have said that if you tell a player something more than two or three times and he doesn't do it, then get shot of him. I've been very patient and very kind to some of my players. But we need to invest and we need invest wisely and we need to move certain people on. That will be done this week - if not this week then the following week. It's irrelevant to me whether players are under contract or not. If they are you just pay them up to go because you want certain characters. You pay them to come and you pay them to go and that's what we'll have to do. I'll have a very busy week, trust me."

It was a scathing assessment, even by Keane's standards, and a revealing insight into the winning mentality which brought the Irishman seven Premier League titles, four FA Cups and Champions League glory during his glittering Old Trafford career.

Keane is disgusted with the idea that surviving relegation should be considered success for Sunderland.

"I remember a few years ago Everton stayed up on the last day of the season and people were on the pitch crying," he said. "But you're thinking 'that's Everton Football Club'. I don't want us walking round the pitch next week and accepting the supporters' applause for survival. I want to think bigger than that because I don't think survival is anything to celebrate. When I'm on my holidays in the summer I'll be thinking of those 22 defeats. I've not forgotten about the games at Luton (3-0 defeat in the Carling Cup) and Wigan (3-0 defeat in the FA Cup).

"I've not forgotten about Everton away, Tottenham away, Man City at home and Newcastle away. These are the games I remember - I don't really remember the victories and I've always worked that way. I must be a naturally miserable person - there's no way getting away from it - and it's my family who I feel sorry for because I've got to go home to them. So my players are very lucky they don't actually live with me - very, very lucky."

Source: teamtalk.com