Robbie Keane Emerges as Contender for Preston North End Manager

Robbie Keane is back in the managerial frame – and this time the trail leads to Deepdale.

The former Celtic striker has emerged as a contender for the vacant Preston North End job, with journalist Alan Nixon reporting that the 46-year-old is under serious consideration following Paul Heckingbottom’s departure.

Only a few months ago, Keane was being lined up for a very different role. He held talks over a dramatic return to Celtic, where he had been strongly linked with the manager’s position before Martin O’Neill was ultimately appointed on a permanent basis. The Irishman had been in discussions about succeeding O’Neill after the latter’s interim spell, but those talks stalled and the move never came to life.

Now his route back into management may run through the Championship instead of Parkhead.

Keane’s name will not be unfamiliar in Preston’s boardroom. He already has a long-standing connection with North End chairman Peter Ridsdale from their time together at Leeds United during Keane’s playing days. That relationship could carry weight as Preston search for their next manager.

O’Neill also knows Ridsdale well. Earlier this year, the Celtic boss visited Deepdale alongside coach Mark Fotheringham, underlining how far back those ties go. Ridsdale first tried to lure O’Neill to Leeds in 2003, even persuading him to sign a “statement of intent” over a potential move to Elland Road at a point when O’Neill was unsure if he would receive a new contract at Celtic.

Keane, meanwhile, has been out of work since leaving Ferencvaros at the end of last season. His time in Budapest ended in disappointment as Ferencvaros missed out on the Hungarian title to ETO FC Gyori, a result that snapped the club’s seven-year run as champions. The man who dethroned him, Balazs Borbely, subsequently replaced Keane and took charge of Ferencvaros.

Links back to Celtic always felt inevitable for Keane. He enjoyed a spell as a player at Parkhead and maintains a strong relationship with the club’s principal shareholder, Dermot Desmond. That connection helped fuel the speculation over the summer, but once O’Neill was confirmed in the role, Keane slipped back into the shadows. He has not publicly discussed the talks with Celtic since.

Preston could change that silence.

If the Deepdale interest hardens into an offer, it would hand Keane his first crack at management in the English Championship – a new stage, a familiar country, and a chance to prove himself in one of the most unforgiving leagues in Europe.