Roy Keane had Ian Wright in stitches during ITV's coverage of England's World Cup qualifier against Latvia at Wembley last night.
The former Manchester United captain couldn't resist a witty quip when discussing Thomas Tuchel's decision to rotate his squad.
Tuchel, in his second match as Three Lions boss following Friday's 2-0 victory over Albania, made four changes to his starting lineup.
The German's squad rotation prompted a humorous exchange between the pundits, with Keane's deadpan delivery leaving fellow pundit Wright laughing.
Roy Keane was in classic Roy Keane mode on Monday night
ITV
Presenter Mark Pougatch had asked the panel about the merits of rotation and giving different players opportunities.
Tuchel's changes saw Aston Villa star Morgan Rogers handed his first England start, having previously made three substitute appearances.
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Reece James, Marc Guehi and Jarrod Bowen were the other players brought into the side.
Kyle Walker, Dan Burn, Curtis Jones and Phil Foden all dropped out of the starting eleven.
Despite facing criticism from Tuchel himself after the Albania match, Marcus Rashford retained his place in the lineup.
Arsenal youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly also kept his spot at left-back, continuing his impressive introduction to international football.
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The rotation demonstrated Tuchel's desire to assess his options early in his tenure as England manager.
Keane's response to the rotation question was typically forthright and laced with his trademark dry humour.
"I'm a great believer in squad rotation," said Keane. "I believed in that as a player... but once I played!"
When Pougatch asked if he didn't believe in rotation, Keane quipped: "No, not in my position. You can rotate everybody else!"
The Irishman continued with a smirk: "Look, I see the bigger picture. But, what Ian just said, you do enough that you can't leave me out. You rotate the others, not me!"
Wright could barely contain his laughter at his colleague's candid admission about his playing days.
"I'm a great believer in squad rotation... Not my position - rotate everybody else." 😂
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 24, 2025
Roy Keane on squad management...#ITVFootball | #ThreeLions pic.twitter.com/RTDejpvISx
One player who maintained his place in Tuchel's rotated side was Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice.
The match marked Rice's sixth anniversary as a senior England international.
Speaking ahead of the fixture, Rice reflected on his journey: "I've grown so much as a player and as a person in that time."
"Six years ago, I remember ex-pros that have retired now when I was at West Ham telling me, 'Dec, enjoy your career because it goes so quick'."
"To play for England is the biggest thing you can do and it's been one of the best journeys I've ever had."
Rice added: "With Thomas now and this new era, there's still so much more to come."
