Roy Keane has reignited his war of words with Bruno Fernandes, posting a biting response on social media after the Manchester United captain accused him of dishonesty. The Irish legend appeared to directly answer the Portuguese midfielder’s claim that Keane had misrepresented his comments about recent performances.

Keane fires back online

The long-running tension between the former Manchester United skipper and the current one has taken a fresh turn. Following Fernandes’ public accusation that the pundit had lied, Keane responded on Instagram with a striking image of a donkey accompanied by the caption: “Too much attention makes a donkey think he’s a lion.”

The timing of the post — appearing just hours after Fernandes’ remarks were made public — strongly suggested it was aimed at the playmaker. Keane has frequently criticised Fernandes for his leadership approach and on-field demeanour, but this latest exchange has gone beyond football analysis into a personal clash over truthfulness.

Fernandes accuses Keane of lying

The dispute intensified when Fernandes appeared on the Diary of a CEO podcast to address Keane’s remarks on The Overlap. The midfielder alleged that Keane had distorted his words following a match against Nottingham Forest, where Keane accused him of focusing on personal assist milestones instead of team achievements. Fernandes rejected the claim outright, saying the veteran had fabricated the story.

Speaking to host Steven Bartlett, Fernandes stated: “I’ve always said I don’t mind criticism. I always take it from everyone and never reply to anything. People can have their opinions — good, bad, whatever. What I don’t like is when people lie about things.”

He went on: “In this case, what Roy Keane said is simply not true. Either he saw a different interview or he’s mistaken, but he can’t claim I said something I didn’t. I accept his criticism, whether he likes me as a player or not, or as a person or not, but I don’t appreciate having words put into my mouth.”

The assist record controversy

The disagreement stems from Fernandes’ record-setting season, during which he surpassed Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne to register 21 assists — a new Premier League record for a single campaign. Keane had earlier admitted he was “raging” at how Manchester United celebrated Fernandes matching the record late in the season, suggesting the focus on personal achievements was misplaced.

Keane had commented: “After the game, he got interviewed, and the Manchester United captain said: ‘Yeah, a few times I probably should have shot, but I made them passes.’ Wow. How can a footballer’s mindset be about chasing an individual record?”

Fernandes has since insisted he said the opposite — that he should have passed more — and even contacted former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to obtain Keane’s number so he could clarify the situation directly.

Carrick backs his captain

Despite the criticism from the Sky Sports studio, Fernandes still has the full support of his manager, Michael Carrick. The Manchester United boss, who recently committed his future to Old Trafford, remains confident that the Portuguese star is the right leader to guide the club back to Champions League contention.

Addressing the speculation around his captain, Carrick said: “He’s such a big influence for us and has led by example in various ways. I’ve got no reason to think otherwise. We’ve loved what he’s brought to the team, and he clearly loves being here — that’s obvious to everyone.”