Keegan's boys taught lesson by Leeds

Robbie Keane was not merely kick-starting the celebrations with the sublime late goal which Terry Venables, the new Leeds manager and sometime author, could hardly have scripted better himself. The Republic of Ireland striker was also reminding everyone that despite an emphatic, if flattering, 3-0 victory over Manchester City there may still be problems ahead at Elland Road.

Despite his World Cup heroics and the £12million Leeds paid Inter Milan for his services, Keane can leave for around £9m - the fee Sunderland agreed last month and the figure being looked at by Tottenham.

Except that Keane does not want to leave, his team-mates do not want him to leave, and - as he savoured the brilliant finish that surely qualified as goal of the day - Venables confirmed he does not want Keane to leave.

Which just leaves the plc board, the powerbrokers who reacted to David O'Leary's sniping at the imminent £30m sale of prime asset Rio Ferdinand by ordering the axe for the manager who guided them to the semi-final of the Champions League.

Few know better than Venables the possible consequences of going head-to-head with upper management, where bitterness can quickly replace the sugar-coating, but his case must be strengthened with every director who sensed glory instead of pound signs on Saturday.

Venables, who will have six strikers once Robbie Fowler's hip surgery heals, insisted: 'I want them all to stay. Whether I'll be allowed to keep them is another matter. We'll have discussions about it. 'Robbie (Keane) doesn't want to leave, and I don't want to let him go. That's our side of it. What comes after that, we'll see.' Venables' stance will delight Keane, whose acrobatic gunfighter celebration routine has rarely been as forceful as the one that followed his delicate and deft 79th-minute chip over poor Carlo Nash when Alan Smith's header flicked the ball into his path. Keane, who had come off the bench 10 minutes earlier, had no time afterwards to stand around being modest but, be assured, the flight he was rushing to take landed at Dublin rather than Heathrow. Instead Mark Viduka, clinical scorer of Leeds' crucial second just before half-time and the player Keane replaced, spoke for the dressing room when he insisted the Irishman has a vital role to play in this season's challenge.

Viduka insisted: 'If we let Robbie go it will be a big loss to us. He's a spark, and when he came on he devastated their defence. He scored a beautiful goal and could have had a hat-trick in 20 minutes, and that shows just what a menace he is.' Main striker Viduka, whose £6m fee from Celtic looks risible now, delivered the blow that ensured all Kevin Keegan's enterprise would go unrewarded when he took full advantage of a through-ball from debutant Nick Barmby, scorer of the 16th-minute opener. But City centre half Steve Howey, the defender left standing by Viduka's 44th-minute solo sprint, admitted to a rare lapse in judgment as he shouldered the blame for ignoring the groin injury that rendered him ineffective.