Roy Keane has claimed Tim Sherwood was positioning himself to take the Aston Villa manager's job long before Paul Lambert was sacked.

The former Manchester United captain, who was Lambert's assistant at Villa Park until last November, writes in his updated autobiography that Sherwood attended a number of Villa matches in the final months of the Scot's tenure.

Keane writes: 'I went to watch Villa against Bournemouth in the FA Cup a few weeks before Paul was sacked and Tim Sherwood was sitting behind me. I just thought, 'All right....'

Roy Keane, seen here working as a pundit for ITV, claims in an updated version of his autobiography that Tim Sherwood was positioning himself to be Aston Villa manager long before Paul Lambert was sacked

Sherwood was appointed Villa manager in mid-February and has improved their fortunes

Keane worked as Paul Lambert's No 2 at Villa Park until quitting back in November

'Some men go to matches if they think there's a job there for them. I believe Tim had been at two or three games.

'It's not a criticism of Tim. It's part of the game, it's the industry we're in.

'I'd go the other way myself. If I thought the manager was under pressure and I was somehow being linked to the job, I'd avoid the place.'

Sherwood was appointed Villa manager on February 14 and has since eased the club's Premier League relegation concerns and guided them to the FA Cup final, where they will play Arsenal at Wembley on May 30.

Sherwood has guided Aston Villa to the FA Cup final, where they face Arsenal on May 30

Keane makes the comments in an updated edition of his autobiography, 'The Second Half'

Christian Benteke, the Villa striker, also comes in for criticism in Keane's updated book

Villa currently have a two-point cushion between themselves and the Premier League drop zone

Villa are in 14th place but sit just two points above the relegation zone with three matches - against West Ham, Southampton and Burnley - to play.

Keane stepped down as Lambert's No 2 in November to concentrate on his role as assistant manager to Martin O'Neill for the Republic of Ireland.

In the new chapter of his book, seen by The Sun, Keane also criticises the training methods of Belgium striker Christian Benteke.

He writes: 'He wasn't one for scoring many goals in training. With all the top strikers I'd worked with, the top ones always loved scoring in training.'

An updated version of Keane's autobiography 'The Second Half' is published later this month.