ROY KEANE has emerged as a serious contender to replace Neil Lennon as manager of Celtic.
Lennon resigned this week after months of poor form, having left the Glasgow club 18 points adrift in the race for the championship.
Celtic's arch-rivals Rangers are on the verge of their first title win in a decade, and completing an historic turnaround after falling into administration and being plunged into the Scottish fourth tier back in 2012.
Keane, who joined the club as a player in 2005 following an infamously abrupt end to his Manchester United career, joins the likes of Steve Clarke, Eddie Howe, Frank Lampard and John Kennedy - Lennon's former assistant who has taken caretaker charge of the club - as a major contender for the job.
The Irishman rejected the position in May 2014, coincidentally after Lennon ended his first spell in charge, as he felt the club "weren't showing how much they wanted me".
Roy Keane signing for Celtic in 2005At the time, Keane said it was the "right club" at the "wrong time" as he'd only just accepted a job as Republic of Ireland assistant manager.
Could it be the right time now though?
Despite making just 13 appearances for the Hoops in an otherwise forgettable six month stint, Keane admitted that he'd been a Celtic fan as a boy, and quickly endeared himself to the Celtic Park faithful.
The Cork man hasn't managed a club since he left Ipswich Town 10 years ago, and aside from spells as Ireland, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest assistant in recent years, he's since settled into the cushy life of a TV pundit, forming a rather unlikely bond with former Manchester City defender Micah Richards.
