Mick McCarthy said today he has "no regrets" over his handling of the Roy Keane affair.
"Maybe I could have smiled a bit more but other than that I have no regrets about what happened during the summer," said the Irish manager, who was speaking at a press conference ahead of Wednesday’s friendly international with Finland.
"I can't change what people think of me. I just want to get on with my job and I think we have done pretty well to be honest.
"Once again I find myself talking about things other than football. As far as I am concerned the matter is closed but it is going to be raked up continuously. It is always going to be there, looming in the background.
"As a football manager, I always expected to be judged on results and strangely enough that is what happened when the table isn't as good as it is now," McCarthy said.
"Now it has turned I am being judged on things other than results, which is a little bit unfair."
McCarthy refused to discuss his World Cup diary which is for release in October.
"They are my reflections on the World Cup. That is for me to do and you will see it when it comes out. I addressed the issue at the time and whatever people want to say afterwards, I can do nothing about".
McCarthy showed no interest in offering an olive branch to Keane. "Roy has said he has retired from international football, which is something he was always going to do after the World Cup," he said.
"The fact is he has said he will not play again as long as I am manager or coach. He is entitled to change his mind, just as I can but if he is not prepared to play there is nothing I can do".
PA