From The Sun:
‘READING captain Phil Parkinson has spoken out against Roy Keane - and urged the FA to 'throw the book' at Manchester United's midfield hardman.
"I don't normally like criticising fellow pros, but I feel Roy has overstepped the mark. I remember when he made that tackle on Haaland, and thinking it was made by a player with total disregard for the consequences of his actions. Sometimes it seems he feels he's bigger than the game itself.
"To come out and admit the maliciousness in his tackle was premeditated is an insult to our profession, and I hope the FA throw the book at him."
James Lawton adds his thoughts in the Indie:
‘I don't hold much of a brief for Haaland, whose demeanour on the field invariably suggested more a source of petty aggravation than warrior instinct, and still less of his and Manchester City's plan to sue Keane following the latter's unequivocal statement that the appalling tackle he committed had its origins several years before. Nor are the warnings of heavy discipline from the Football Association too impressive. Rather than responding to macho boasts it would be better developing a disciplinary system which could draw a line between fouls which were professional and those as diabolical as the one Keane unleashed.
There is also, unquestionably, powerful grounds to say that, aside from the extremities of his nature, and his apparent intolerance of much of the rest of humanity, there is a lot to commend Keane as an arbiter of football values. His commitment to Manchester United and Ireland on the field has been exceptional. Outside of the Haaland incident, the instances of Keane initiating violence on the field are rare indeed.
His weakness is his ability to control his reactions to that which he considers cheap and unworthy of the battle. Haaland's offence, in his eyes, was not violent tackling but insulting talk. None of this, however, and despite the strictures of Mr Walsh, does much to dislodge the belief that Keane, in both his behaviour in walking out on the Irish team before the World Cup and the violence and coarseness of his approved serialisation, has stepped beyond a reasonable mark.’