“Without being rude to Sunderland, I’d say Roy is a Manchester United manager in the waiting,” he told the Guardian.
“I know Roy well. I’ve been in his company in Ireland and I’m not surprised at how well he’s made the transition to management.
“He’s done the right thing learning his trade where he is but he won’t have any problems managing big-name players because the best in the world still look up to him. I think a few years from now Roy will be an ideal Manchester United manager – if not the Irish national manager.”
“Roy’s grown up and is a great credit to himself now, but you can’t judge people on what they were like as players,” he added. “Dave Mackay took no prisoners as a player but when he came into management he showed a completely different face.”
