Blackburn Rovers boss Paul Ince is ready to face Sunderland and his former Manchester United teammate Roy Keane in tonight's Carling Cup tie.
Ince said: "I am not surprised Roy went into management. We had a great partnership at United. He was a fantastic player and we had some good times together. He was always a leader of men.
"I wish him all the success in the world. He is a young manager learning his trade, just like me.
"He has spent a few quid at Sunderland and it is still a struggle for him. It just shows you how competitive the league is.
"But he needs time as he is trying to build something there. He will need three or four years to get to where he wants. We want to be in the same boat."
Ince is indebted to Keane for the encouragement he gave him when he was starting out in management at League Two side Macclesfield.
They were adrift at the foot of the table when he arrived but he managed to keep them in the league before moving to MK Dons and securing promotion.
Ince said: "When I was at Macclesfield and we were the 92nd team in the league, he was the one who was always ringing me up and texting me, saying, 'Good luck, I hope you get a result'.
"I repaid that favour when he was in the Championship with Sunderland, so we've had that relationship for years."