Martin O'Neill's tactical preferences are relatively well known. The incoming Ireland manager is not really a 4-4-2 man which should be a nice change to the rigidity of Giovanni Trapattoni's reign.
O'Neill has tended towards 3-5-2s, 4-5-1s or a 4-4-1-1 formation during his career, often with a target man leading the line.
But what do we know about the tactical preferences of O'Neill's potential assistant Roy Keane?
The former Manchester United captain is relatively inexperienced as a manager or coach, with spells at Sunderland and Ipswich.
His two year reign at Sunderland started off well as he took the Black Cats from bottom of the Championship to Premier League promotion. Keeping them up in his debut season, he walked out early on in the 2008/09 season.
The default formation was 4-4-2, although Keane occasionally switched to 4-5-1 or 4-3-3.
Keane generally preferred a workman-like midfield made up of players like Dean Whitehead, Dickson Etuhu and Liam Miller, while creativity was the responsibility of the wide midfielders. For example, Andy Reid often played on the left flank, although his last appearance for Ireland saw him take up a central attacking role behind the striker.
The Sunderland team that beat North-East rivals Middlesbrough 3 - 2 in April 2008
At Ipswich where 4-4-2 was the most common team shape with sporadic use of a three man midfield.
During his own playing career, Keane was accustomed to playing in a 4-4-2, although this did change as time went on, particularly in Europe where Alex Ferguson used a more modern 4-5-1.
In terms of players, Keane had a propensity to sign Irish players with Andy Reid, Jon Walters, Damien Delaney, Anthony Stokes and Paul McShane among current squad members that he has either signed or managed.
However, he has had major issues with Jon Walters in the past which is a situation to look out for. The pair fell out while at Ipswich and Keane, with Walters eventually leaving the club.
He has also been critical of Andy Reid in the past. After the Nottingham Forest player was exiled by Giovanni Trapattoni, Keane backed Trap's decision, saying:
“I think Reid can be fitter. I find it hard to accept players who are at a professional level saying that they could be fitter."
It is too early to know how much input Keane will have in terms of choosing Ireland squads or tactics but it is quite possible that the 42-year-old's own tactical preferences may have been modified during his time out of the game.
