Ally McCoist says he watched Roy Keane argument "17 times"

Former Scotland striker Ally McCoist has admitted he loved the on-air argument between Roy Keane and Graeme Souness during ITV's World Cup coverage. 

When Saud Abulhamid dragged Leandro Paredes down for a penalty in the eighth minute of the World Cup 2022 fixture between Saudi Arabia and Argentina, Keane and Souness – both pundits on ITV's team – had very differing opinions. 

When asked by presenter Laura Woods if he believed it was a penalty, Souness responded, "Definitely. He [the Saudi Arabia defender] doesn't know where the ball is. He's only interested in the Argentinian player. I think that is a penalty."

"All this will do is encourage diving," Keane retorted. "He [the Argentina player] is dragging him down."

"Roy, you're not listening to what Laura said," Souness came back. "It's a directive for the referees. It's not about opinion, it's a fact that the guy wasn't looking at the ball."

"I listened to what she said, in my opinion that's not a penalty," the former Republic of Ireland captain responded.

"It's not about opinion, it's about the laws of the game," Souness argued, with Keane asking, "Why am I here to give my opinion then?"

"I've heard you say it ten times," the Scotsman said. "Do you want to say it again? Let someone else speak. You'll learn a lot more if you listen rather than talk all the time."

The discussion trended online, with Twitter users picking a side from either former midfielder. Ally McCoist, however, refused to back a horse, claiming that he loved it during the Germany vs Mexico commentary. 

"I've watched it 17 times," McCoist laughed, adding "It's Joe Cole I felt sorry for," in reference to the former England star's role as the third pundit on the end of the line listening to Souness and Keane bicker.

ITV are broadcasting the coverage to the first three World Cup games of November 23.