Roy Keane has dismissed suggestions that he is confrontational with players after being named Aston Villa's new assistant manager.

The 42-year-old, whose job as Paul Lambert's assistant begins immediately, believes that the reputation he has picked up since his switch from playing to management is an unfair reflection of how he actually works with players.

"Whatever people think about my attitude to working with players, about it being confrontational and all that stuff – I actually don't think it is true," Keane is quoted as saying by The Mirror. "I hope they will enjoy working with me.

"I think it is a bit unfair, but it doesn't keep me awake at night. I suppose it is part of the image which has been built up over the years, although I have had one or two incidents."

Keane will juggle his new role with his job as assistant to Republic of Ireland manager Martin O'Neill.