Roy Keane has responded good-naturedly to James Maddison after the Tottenham midfielder aimed a celebration at him following criticism.
The Manchester United legend was targeted by Maddison's "shush" gesture after scoring the winner against the Red Devils earlier this month.
Keane has now addressed the incident on The Overlap podcast, even mimicking Maddison's trademark darts celebration whilst maintaining his original critique.
The exchange began when Keane questioned Maddison's impact on the Stick to Football podcast.
Roy Keane gave a good-natured response to James Maddison's shushing
The Overlap/Reuters
The former United skipper had dismissed Maddison's ability to make a difference for Tottenham.
Though acknowledging him as a "good, talented player", Keane claimed anyone who thought Maddison could move Spurs into the top six was living in "cuckoo land".
The Irishman's comments came as Maddison was returning from a calf injury.
Keane's scathing assessment made headlines and clearly struck a nerve with the England international, who was determined to prove the pundit wrong.
Maddison delivered the perfect response by scoring the winner against Manchester United.
He celebrated with his usual darts gesture but added a pointed "shush" aimed at Keane.
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Speaking to Sky Sports afterwards, Maddison referenced "a little bit of outside noise this week" and hoped "there's a certain few that enjoyed me being the match-winner today!"
The midfielder later removed any doubt about his target by posting a TikTok video showing Keane's comments followed by his goal and celebration.
The clip quickly went viral on social media.
Keane has now responded on The Overlap podcast, taking Maddison's celebration in good humour.
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James Maddison scored the winner against United earlier this month
Reuters
"Good on him. Absolutely. No problem," Keane said when asked by Gary Neville.
"When he scored, I was at home with my cup of tea and I went, 'Good on you'."
The former midfielder added: "If people have a go at you, you answer them back."
Footage from the podcast shows Keane mimicking Maddison's darts celebration, sending fellow pundits including Neville, Jamie Carragher and Ian Wright into laughter.
Despite his good-humoured response, Keane stood by his original assessment of Maddison.
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The wait is over... Roy finally responds to James Maddison’s dig! 👀
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Stick to Football returns tomorrow, and trust us, it's a spicy one! 🌶️ 🔥 pic.twitter.com/IhgraDm2Nh
"I still go back to what I said. I don't think he does enough of that," the pundit maintained.
Keane couldn't resist adding a final dig, noting: "I was hoping he was going to do the same the other day but he was a sub against Ipswich."
He did acknowledge Maddison's contribution in that match, adding: "He got an assist against Ipswich to be fair."
Maddison has nine goals and five assists in the Premier League this season.
