Sunderland fullback Phil Bardsley admits he was surprised by the quit rumours last week of manager Roy Keane.

Bardsley said of his former Manchester United teammate: "The manager isn't really any different when things go badly because he's been through it all before. He knows how difficult it is when you are playing some decent stuff and you're not getting that little bit of lady luck you need to win a game.

"He's shown faith in us and I think we did him proud with the three points at Blackburn. I'm not really sure what went on last week with the manager to be honest. He has done a great job and the lads love working with him. There's no reason he wouldn't want to be here."