Whatever happened to the other R. Keane?

Since he stormed out of the World Cup almost a month ago, Ireland's former captain Roy Keane has, with a few notable exceptions, managed to avoid the limelight.

The hot-tempered midfielder is currently holed up in his gated mansion in Hale Barns, Cheshire, leaving occasionally to take his golden Labrador for a walk.

Spotted outside his home last week by a press photographer, the Manchester United captain was asked how he thought Ireland were playing and responded "in finest Gaelic".

On 11 June, the day Mick McCarthy's Ireland team qualified for the knockout stage with a 3-0 win over Saudi Arabia, Keane appeared to make a public statement of his indifference.

During the first half he was seen visiting shops and buying provisions and drove back to his £1m home in his silver Mercedes. Then, during halftime, he left the house with his Labrador, only returning after the final whistle when Ireland had qualified for the last 16.

After being sent home before the tournament, Keane, 30, returned to his wife and daughters in Cheshire where he was besieged by media.

In a deal brokered by his lawyer and agent Michael Kennedy, Keane then travelled to a local hotel where he told his story to the Mail on Sunday for a reported six-figure salary. Since then the £100,000-a-week midfielder has not been tempted by offers to act as a World Cup pundit for television and radio. Keane told the newspaper that "not in a million years" would he play for McCarthy, only to perform an extraordinary volte-face 24 hours later in an interview on Irish TV.

He then joined his family in Cork on 1 June to watch Ireland's opening game against Cameroon with his father, Moss, and the rest of the family. He spent a week in his native Cork and was reportedly house-hunting in the area.

He returned a week later to Cheshire. He is waiting for a knee operation and is expected to lead Manchester United for the start of the season in August.