Soccer:MANCHESTER UNITED boss Alex Ferguson admitted his surprise yesterday at Roy Keane's resignation as Sunderland manager.

Ferguson had been preparing to pit his wits against his one-time captain with Sunderland due to visit Old Trafford today and feels Keane's absence will be a blow for the Premier League.

"I am surprised," said the United chief. "Roy was a great player here and it is a pity. We wish him well."

Ferguson admitted, however, he was unsure whether Keane would ever return to the management ranks.

"It is difficult to say whether he will be back," said the Scot. "He is an incredibly controversial character. Every week he always had something to say about the game. He was the same as a player.

"He is such an interesting character and did a decent job up there."

However, Manchester City manager Mark Hughes is convinced Keane will return to the game wiser and stronger.

Hughes believes his former United team-mate has much to offer on the coaching side.

He said: "Roy is a young man and still has a great future in the game. Maybe he just needs that breathing space to refresh himself, take a step back and learn from the experience.

"He will have had his reasons for leaving Sunderland. He is a very forthright and straight guy.

"Once he makes a decision he sticks to his guns. That seems to be what has happened here. You just sensed he was going to consider his future and possibly walk away and that is what has happened."

Another ex-United team-mate, Paul Ince, who is now manager at Blackburn, is facing similar pressures, expressed his sympathy.

Ince said: "There are certain people out there who want to put you down and it's more so the young managers and that's the annoying thing, they don't want to give people a chance.

"Sometimes they can drive you out of a job and that's probably what they've done with Keano.

"I was very disappointed because Keano's an excellent young manager and we've been clamouring for new managers for years. We've had the same managers for the last 20 years doing the rounds.

"People forget what he did for Sunderland, taking them from near the bottom of the Championship into the Premier League. Not many managers could have done that."

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes the game will miss Keane, but expects him to be back.

The Frenchman said: "It is a surprise, but I can understand that. He is a passionate man, and I regret he leaves the job.

"When you are passionate, especially at the start of this career, you suffer immensely physically.

"Also because he is a passionate man, there is no other way for him to be in the job.

"When you are passionate about the game, you go out of it and then come back into it because there is no other way to be happy.

"That is why I believe he will be back."

Meanwhile, Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn has been inundated with applications from around the world for the job vacated by Keane.

Within hours of the 37-year-old's departure, Quinn was being contacted by prospective replacements interested in the post.

It is understood a growing list of candidates includes several with impressive pedigrees.

When Quinn and his Drumaville partners started the process of recruiting a manager back in the summer of 2006, they were unable to persuade the likes of Sam Allardyce, Martin O'Neill and Alan Curbishley their future lay at the Stadium of Light.

However, club insiders are confident this time around. Allardyce, who opted to stay with Bolton three summers ago, has already indicated his interest in the post after 11 months out of work following his departure from Newcastle.

The Dudley-born boss currently leads the betting with former Bolton assistant Phil Brown having distanced himself from the vacancy.

Curbishley also has support among the club's fans, while Celtic's Gordon Strachan has attracted money, as has former England manager Steve McClaren, currently in charge at Dutch side FC Twente, although he is not thought to be in the running.