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Roy Keane attacks 'disgraceful' Jose Mourinho over handshake attempt

Roy Keane has warned Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho he would be "knocked out" if he tried to shake hands before the final whistle in Sunday league football.

Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert refused to take Portuguese's hand as he prepared to head down the tunnel before the end of his side's 3-0 defeat by the Blues at Stamford Bridge on Sept. 27, and his assistant Keane's reaction was even more withering.

Asked about the incident as he launched his new autobiography, "The Second Half," in Dublin on Thursday afternoon, Keane said: "It's disgraceful.

"I've seen him doing it to other managers, it is a disgrace. The game is still going on. You wouldn't do that on a Sunday morning, you would get knocked out."

But while Mourinho found himself in the firing line, it was Keane's former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson upon who the spotlight fell as Keane discussed the falling-out between the pair as his time at Old Trafford drew to a close in 2005.

The relationship between the two men deteriorated beyond the point of no return with the then United captain's infamous MUTV interview and his reference to Ferguson's involvement with the syndicate which owned racehorse Rock of Gibraltar helping to bring matters to a head.

Keane -- who insisted he only ever had "five, six" one-to-one talks with the Scot during his 12-and-a-half years at United -- was nevertheless not afraid to have his say, but admitted other managers were intimidated by Ferguson.

He said: "I think a lot of managers would probably be intimidated by him, probably bow to him. I think a lot of managers are heavily influenced by him, of course.

"I think [Everton boss Roberto] Martinez reckons he was misquoted a few years ago [saying] that Ferguson had his disciples. He obviously does.

"When a manager takes players away from being on loan -- I think it was Preston when Ferguson was manager -- when his son [Darren] got the sack, and, all of a sudden, the players are coming away on loan.''

Ferguson used his own autobiography, published last year, to settle his own scores with Keane and David Beckham among those to come in for criticism, a move described as "ridiculous" by the Irishman.

The Scot suggested at one point that the hardest part of the midfield enforcer was his tongue, a barb which produced a cutting response.

A smiling Keane said: "Well, what do you think? I kick pretty hard. I think it was a cheap dig. He was never critical when we were winning trophies and he was getting his new contracts, getting this after him, Sir this.

"He was not pulling me or other players, saying, 'Listen, you need to relax a bit'. That was the game and I appreciate the game. The game finished, but it was all the carry on afterwards."

While Keane moved on to Celtic to finish his playing days before himself heading into management, Ferguson rebuilt once again at Old Trafford before retiring in a blaze of glory, leaving the club in a period of transition which created issues for successor David Moyes that are currently being addressed by Louis van Gaal.

However, Keane does not blame his former manager for what he left behind, saying: "I wouldn't be critical of Ferguson, but sometimes when you're leaving, it gives the manager a chance to make their own mark. He [Moyes] brought in one or two players, didn't get the players clearly that he was after in the summer.

"But I don't think that's the manager; it's the chief executive [executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward] who can probably look at himself. I'm sure if you ask the chief exec, he will say, 'Yeah, we missed out on a few deals'. There were two or three lined up that fell through, and they ended up getting one or two on transfer deadline day, [Juan] Mata in January.

"But maybe the damage was done then. I was going to Old Trafford and there was a lot of negativity around. They got no momentum and it was as if David Moyes was snookered from the first few weeks.

"That negativity can get into the dressing room, and that's why I felt it was a weak dressing room. They should have dealt with that and the players should have done better.

"I saw a number of games and whatever has gone on -- politics, managers leaving, lack of players coming in -- they should have done better and they did let him down, without a shadow of a doubt.''

In the book, Keane talks candidly about his issues with alcohol and anger, and the mistakes he has made during his career to date, and it has proved a cathartic exercise.

However, asked if it has been hard work being Roy Keane at times, and if he now likes himself more, he replied with a smile: "That's a bit heavy. I'm contented and comfortable with who I am, yeah."

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