Roy Keane weighs in on sexist Mary Earps remark made by Joey Barton as Man Utd legend aims hilarious dig

Barton has been a regular in the news headlines recently after he followed up a rant saying that female pundits"shouldn't be talking with any kind of authority in the men's game" by slamming Mary Earp's BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award win. The former Manchester City midfielder's spell in the spotlight meant he was the perfect punchline when Keane was being ribbed in a podcast quiz.

Keane and Ian Wright were paired up against Sky Sports punditry duo Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher for an end-of-year quiz on The Overlap podcast.

With Keane struggling to answer a question on who out of David Moyes at Everton or Emma Hayes at Chelsea was the longest-serving, the Irishman grabbed his phone and joked: "I might call Joey Barton. Joey would know."

Ian Wright then dialled up Emma Hayes herself to confirm she had been at Chelsea for longer.

Barton's recent tirades against the women's game have been met with condemnation but gained traction nonetheless with media keen for talking points. Comments on Earps' scooping of the prestigious BBC prize appeared particularly harsh given the award is decided by public vote.

It was appropriate that Keane was sat next to Wright when making the joke. The former Arsenal striker has long been a vocal advocate of the women's game, and has worked to promote the sport at grassroots level while calling for more funding to capitalise on the recent successes of the Lionesses.