Dwight Yorke 'shocked' by Roy Keane's decision to leave Sunderland

Dwight Yorke has revealed he was "shocked, surprised and saddened" by Roy Keane's decision to walk out on Sunderland.

Yorke, currently in a player coach role assisting caretaker boss Ricky Sbragia, claimed Keane could have turned things around at Sunderland had he decided to stay on.

"I was shocked, surprised and saddened," said Yorke. "He was the man responsible for me coming here in the first place.

"If it wasn't for Roy, I would not be here.

"So I'm very grateful for that, and sad to see him go. I genuinely believe he could have turned things around but for whatever reason he has decided not to.

"Roy is his own man and it was his own decision. It was sad to see him go, for everybody at the club. But we've seen it happen in football so many times.

"We just have to crack on as players. We don't get involved in the politics. I haven't spoken to Roy but I've had a text from him.

"In a text it's very difficult to say what you want to say but I'm hoping to touch base with him soon."

Despite the turmoil caused by the manager's departure, Yorke claimed the fighting spirit Sunderland demonstrated at Old Traffiord showed there is life after Roy and proved they can survive in the Premier League.

Although Sunderland's brave resistance was ultimately broken by Nemanja Vidic's 90th-minute strike, Yorke praised the character shown by their players.

"The important thing was the togetherness and the fighting spirit," said Yorke.

"We could easily have folded but we didn't do that. With the gaffer leaving, and all that's been happening, it's been a hectic few days.

"But we defended and were resilient for such a long time during the game. A lot of credit must go to the players because it was a sterling effort to keep United out for such a long time.

"Of course we're all bitterly disappointed by the late goal but there are a lot of positives. The one thing we can take from this is the good character we've shown as a team.

"Hopefully we can go on and get better as the season goes on."

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