'Living in his head!' - Alan Shearer bites back at Roy Keane's 'sneaky & nasty' player jibe as Gary Lineker accuses Man Utd legend of 'trying to get PR' for rival podcast

The Shearer-Keane rivalry is one of the most enduring in Premier League history. Their on-field clashes in games between Newcastle and Man Utd and differing punditry styles have always created headlines and talking points. Any new barbs will therefore spark interest among fans, with Keane stirring the pot on the latest episode of the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet. The Irishman said: “Shearer was sneaky, sneaky elbows. I didn’t admire people who were nasty, I don’t like nasty people."

England icon Lineker brought up Keane's comments with Shearer on The Rest Is Football Podcast, saying: "It's amazing what rival pods will do to try and get a bit of PR."

Shearer then replied: "Someone sent me that the other day, and then Micah [Richards] sent me it and Wrighty [Ian Wright] and we had a laugh. I mean, really, come on." 

Lineker then suggested that Shearer is "living in his head", before the ex-Newcastle striker continued: "Sneaky and nasty... I mean, some of the tackles, come on."

The segment concluded with Lineker simply saying: "Pot, kettle, black, and that kind of stuff."

Keane and Shearer's most famous bust-up came when Newcastle beat Man Utd 4-3 at St James' Park in a Premier League thriller back in September 2001. Keane was sent off in the game after hurling the ball at Shearer in response to a shove from the Newcastle captain, and subsequently appeared to throw a punch at him, but missed his target and instead knocked the yellow card out of the referee's hand.

Expect further back and forth between Shearer and Keane in the media. Both are prominent pundits, and opportunities for further exchanges are inevitable, especially if their former teams are involved in controversial incidents. 

United and Newcastle have both made poor starts to the 2025-26 campaign, and sit 14th and 15th in the Premier League table after six games, respectively. The Magpies have a Champions League fixture against Union Saint-Gilloise to attend to next on Wednesday before hosting Nottingham Forest in the league four days later. United, meanwhile, are set to host high-flying Sunderland on Saturday.