• Ireland lost final Euro 2016 warm-up match in Cork on Tuesday • ‘They should be counting their blessings,’ says assistant manager

Roy Keane has claimed that he and Martin O’Neill “wanted to kill” some of the Republic of Ireland players following their 2-1 defeat against Belarus in Cork on Tuesday.

Ireland include Robbie Keane and James McCarthy in Euro 2016 squad Read more

Keane, Ireland’s assistant manager, and O’Neill, the manager, watched on as their team prepared for Euro 2016 in less-than-ideal manner; losing their final warm-up match before the tournament against a team 46 places below them in Fifa’s world rankings.

“We wanted to kill some of them [the players] last night,” Keane is quoted as saying by the Irish Independent. “They should be counting their blessing that they’ve managed to get on the flight. A reality check for one or two players who thought they were good players.

“You can lack match sharpness, you can forgive a player for that but you’ve got to get yourself in a good state. Be fit. Be as strong as you can. Eat properly. Prepare properly. You’re playing international football. Control the bloody ball. Pass it to your mates and if you lose it, run back and run back like you care.”

O’Neill named his final 23-man squad for the European Championship after the match at Turner’s Cross. Ireland open their campaign against Sweden on 13 June.