Everton: Roy Keane blames Blues for James McCarthy injuries

Republic of Ireland assistant manger Roy Keane says Everton need to take a look at themselves, when it comes to James McCarthy’s ongoing injury issues.

Never one for avoiding controversy and/or telling it how it is, Roy Keane is at it again. This time, it’s Everton who on the receiving end of the former Manchester United captain’s venom.

As most Blues’ fans are well aware, their team is involved in an ongoing dispute with the Republic of Ireland, regarding James McCarthy’s injury problems. However, as far as Keane is concerned, Ronald Koeman and his staff need to take some responsibility.

The Republic of Ireland’s assistant manager made his comments on Tuesday, when speaking to members of the media. As reported by Joe Shread of Sky Sports, Keane said:

"“James seems to be getting a lot of injuries at Everton so I don’t think we’ve anything to be worried about in terms of how much we push James.“The medical staff are overseeing all of it and are in contact with Everton and all their scientists. I think they’ve more scientists involved than there needs to be.”"

Undoubtedly, Keane’s facetious comments will irk Everton. From Koeman’s perspective, he is frustrated with Martin O’Neill continually selecting a half-fit McCarthy for international duty.

In the interest of being objective, if the player is continually half-fit, maybe Keane is at least somewhat right to criticise the Blues’ medical staff. At the same time, if the Republic of Ireland are selecting McCarthy when he’s not fully fit, the risk is there of aggravating any existing injuries.

More from Prince Rupert's Tower

One thing we do know, which Keane can’t dispute, is that McCarthy picked up a fresh hamstring injury, while on international duty back in March this year. This resulted in him missing the remainder of the 2016/17 season.

In fact, the 26-year-old has not seen any competitive action yet this season either. This is why Koeman was infuriated with O’Neill’s recent decision to provisionally select the midfielder, for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

This led to the Everton manager essentially telling McCarthy he needs to put his club before his country. We can only imagine what will happen, if he does indeed play in either of the upcoming international games and even worse, reinjures himself.

In this event, something tell us Keane will still find a way to blame the Blues. As per Shread, the 46-year-old said:

"“I always think clubs, as much as they look at what we’re doing, they certainly have to have look at what they are doing themselves. But James seems pretty upbeat and we’re glad to have him here.”"

Next: New deal won't guarantee Gueye's Everton future

We appreciate it’s tough to remain objective when it comes to Mr. Roy Keane. Regardless, what do you make of his comments? Is he justified in what he’s saying, or is he just trying to pass the buck to Everton? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.