Roy Keane has never sat on the fence when it comes to his opinions of Manchester United stars.
The club legend has been scathing in his criticism of several players under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
But few have been in the firing line as much as midfielder Fred, who again appears to have emerged as Keane’s scapegoat.
After giving away the free-kick which saw Southampton go 2-0 up at the weekend, Fred came under-fire from a frustrated Keane at half-time.
“I’d be more critical of Fred. Fred giving away the free-kick," Keane said.
“I’d be disappointed with my goalkeeper, but I’d be more disappointed with Fred for being really lazy and really sloppy. Giving away free-kicks in that area is like giving away a penalty.
“Corners can happen, obviously, you’ll take that, but the free-kick, if you look at Fred closely, I’ve been criticising him for years. My eyes don’t lie to me. Really poor decision, really lazy.”
Despite Keane’s criticism, Fred remained on the pitch for the full 90 minutes as Edinson Cavani inspired a comeback to win 3-2.
And recent comments from manager Solskjaer suggest he disagrees with Keane regarding the Brazilian.
After victory over Everton, Solskjaer singled out Fred for praise and hailed the important of his partnership with Scott McTominay.
He said: “You see all the tackles that Scott and Fred were winning in the middle there, we're tight, we're compact, we win the ball, we play, we've got spaces, that's how we want to see these boys. So we're very pleased with that.
"Scott and Fred have done brilliantly together. They're a great partnership.They had that energy in the engine room.
“They're always key for us, so our creative players can go on and create chances, show their magic. They're so disciplined and we're very pleased with the two of them.”
Whilst McTominay missed the game against Southampton, Fred was retained in a clear show of faith from Solskjaer.
His progress was also praised by the manager after Champions League success over RB Leipzig last month.
“I’m sure Fred covered every little single blade of grass on that pitch,” he said.
Asked about Solksjaer’s comments, a flattered Fred told Esporte Interativo: “I’m very happy about that and happy that I’m important to the team. It’s very important that the coach is praising me.”
